Patterns of Acupuncture Practice and Acupoint Usage in Brazil: The Fortaleza Experience

Guimarães, Sergio Botelho; da Silva, Agamenon Honorio; Braga, Jorge Montenegro

doi:10.1016/S2005-2901(09)60036-4

« Previous Next »Journal of Acupuncture and Meridian Studies
Volume 1, Issue 2 , Pages 149-152, December 2008

Patterns of Acupuncture Practice and Acupoint Usage in Brazil: The Fortaleza Experience

Sergio Botelho Guimarães
- Associate Professor of Surgery, Head, Medical Acupuncture Division and Surgical Research Laboratory (LABCEX), Universidade Federal do Ceard (UFC), Brazil
- Corresponding author. Associate Professor of Surgery, Head, Medical Acupuncture Division and Surgical Research Laboratory (LABCEX), Universidade Federal do Ceará (UFC), Brazil
Agamenon Honorio da Silva
- Attending physician, acupuncture specialist, Posto de Saúde Meireles, Brazilian Health System (SUS), Fortaleza, Brazil
- Post-Graduate Fellow (Master's Degree, UFC) and attending physician, acupuncture specialist, Posto de Saúde Meireles, Brazilian Health System (SUS), Fortaleza, Brazil
Jorge Montenegro Braga
- Attending physician, acupuncture specialist, Posto de Saúde Meireles, Brazilian Health System (SUS), Fortaleza, Brazil

Received 25 April 2008; accepted 9 October 2008.

Abstract

Objective

This study is aimed at providing quantitative data on acupoint usage in Fortaleza, Brazil.

Design

Medical records from 100 patients subjected to acupuncture treatments from January 2005 through June 2006 were randomly selected for study. Data collected included sex/age, visit numbers, acupoints used and point combination usage.

Settings

The Meireles Acupuncture Outpatient Clinic is part of the Brazilian Health System (SUS) and offers free acupuncture therapy to people living in Fortaleza, the fifth largest city in Brazil.

Results

Analysis of sex/age distribution showed that female patients were the majority (78%). Ages ranged from 15–88 years (mean, 52 years). The acupoint data were compiled to produce a histogram of the 30 most commonly used acupoints. These 30 points represented 68% of the total number of acupoints needled in Fortaleza. The same value was found in China Beijing Hospital of TCM. The total number of unique points used was 136 in different combinations, totaling 1109 acu-points (average usage, 11 points per patient). Taichong (67%) and Taixi (63%) were the most needled acupoints.

Conclusion

The data collected demonstrate that Brazilian medical acupuncturists have a clear cut preference for some specific acupoints, as do their Chinese colleagues.

Key Words: acupoint , acupuncture therapy , Chinese medicine , medical records , outpatient health services