Anatomy and classification of acupoints

Abstract

Acupuncture points are conceived as points on the skin reflecting visceral conditions and the sites for acupuncture treatment. In the skin, acupoints tend to show higher electric conductivity and have higher concentration of neural and vascular elements as well as mast cells. Locations of some acupoints correspond to the motor points, others to the Golgi tendon organs. There is a group of midline acupoints. Most acupoints are associated with meridians and are known as meridian points. The nature of meridians is under scientific scrutiny. For identification of canine acupoints, the human meridian nomenclature was adopted.