Japanese Points

Japanese Points

Japanese Acupuncture Fertility Points

As indicated on Fertility Enhancing Points used in Traditional Chinese Medicine page, traditionally trained acupuncturists use different acupuncture points depending on each patient’s exhibiting symptoms and constitutional patterns. In addition, many Japanese acupuncturists further modify their treatment based on acupoint reaction at the time of needling, instead of simply inserting the needles at the pre-prescribed sets of acupoints. Since the treatment is highly individualized, selections of acupoints are very wide and vary greatly between practitioner to practitioner, patient to patient, and treatment to treatment.

In terms of treatment frequency and duration, a Japanese clinical acupuncture protocol typically involves series of regularly scheduled treatments. In particular to acupuncture for IVF patients, an acupuncture protocol used at advanced IVF medical center in Nagoya, Japan involves 2 treatments per week, minimum of 21 treatments before IVF procedure [1], which is quite a bit more treatments than the one used in most IVF research studies that involve only 2 treatments at the time of embryo transfer.

Commonly used acupuncture points for infertility indicated by Dr. Haruto Kinoshita, a pioneer of modern Japanese acupuncture [2]

Fundamental acupuncture points used for fertility problems

BL23: Shenshu

BL32: Ciliao

CV2: Qugu

CV4: Guanyuan

Points used for Primary Infertility

BL26: Guanyuanshu

ST28: Shuidao

Points used for recurrent miscarriages

BL26: Guanyuanshu

KI8: Jiaoxin

GV4 Mingmen (moxibustion)

ST28: Shuidao

KI2: Rangu (moxibustion)

[1] Suzuki, H. Infertility and Acupuncture Treatment. The Japanese Journal of Acupuncture and Moxibustion Therapies, Vol. 65, No. 6, 2006

[2] Kinoshita, H. Infertility, In Latest Clinical Acupuncture, Ido no Nippon Sha, 387-396, 1986

Original article and pictures take www.acupuncturemoxibustion.com site