MAIN COMPLAINT

A 55-year-old woman has sinus pressure, headache, face pain, and eye pain. She
has been coming in for over one year. Her original complaint was neck and
shoulder pain and stress. These conditions were resolved. Today, she is coming
in for sinus pressure and headache. She also has eye pain and face pain from
the pressure of her runny nose. She might also have a sinus infection. She has
sinus pressure in both her lower and upper sinuses.

MERIDIANS INVOLVED
The ST, LI, TW, GB, SI channels were all involved. I would also say that the
internal meridian of the LV channel was affected. All of these channels were
affected to some extent.
She had mucus buildup in her sinuses, which were inflamed and irritated. She
also had possible toxic heat/infection in her sinus cavities.

Pain Case Studies with Distal Acupuncture Book Excerpt

Brad Whisnant and Deborah Bleecker
1

TREATMENT POINTS
Since both sides are equally bad, I will need to guess which side is worse. The patient
is unable to tell me.
Left side

44.06
LI 10
LI 4
22.05
11.17

Right side
Left foot

Right leg

San Cha San

PC 3
PC 3.25
66.03
66.04
ST 44
66.05
77.08
88.17
88.18
88.19

Pain Case Studies with Distal Acupuncture Book Excerpt

Brad Whisnant and Deborah Bleecker
2

Pain Case Studies with Distal Acupuncture Book Excerpt

Brad Whisnant and Deborah Bleecker
3

OUTCOME
She had no pain when she left my office, both the lower and upper sinuses were clear.
She could breathe normally. I instructed her to go home and use a sinus rinse, or
mentholatum to keep her sinuses clear and to call me again if further treatment was
necessary.
COMMENTS
This case is a great example of the pain not being the root cause of the pain. The pain
was from a completely different cause, the inflamed sinuses. Pain is like that. You
have to consider what the cause is. Is it inflammation, irritation, or trauma? Is it an
alarm signal for something more serious? Is the pain originating from another
location that also needs to be treated?
Should we treat the pain where it is, or is it referred pain? In this case, I chose to
treat the root, which was the mucus, the inflammation of the sinuses, and the
pressure from the phlegm accumulation. All of her pain originated in a sinus
inflammation. If I could reduce the inflammation, the sinuses could drain and return
to normal. Barring an infection, her pain would be eliminated.

Pain Case Studies with Distal Acupuncture Book Excerpt

Brad Whisnant and Deborah Bleecker
4

Point 44.06 images the nose, with the face being imaged on the whole arm. The LI
channel will treat the LI and ST channel. This is via the twelve segments theory.
LI 10 images the face because the elbows are the eyes. We can image the whole face
on the whole arm.
LI 4 images the face. When the hand is the face, LI 4 is exactly where the nose would
be.
Point 22.05 moves Qi and blood to improve circulation in the face.
Point 11.17 treats the LV and LI channels. These points open the nose and eyes, and
wood controls wind. Remember that the LV channel goes into the throat, nose, and
the brain. The LI channel goes to the face. The LI channel fixes the LV channel, this
is a very important relationship.
San Cha San opens the orifices and treats the GB and TW channels of the face. The
image here is the hand is the face.
PC 3 and PC 3.25 is a modified point in the spirit of Master Tung. The nose is the
elbow. Just below and above the elbow, are the sinuses, if we image the face on the
arm. The PC channel treats the ST. It is a VERY EFFECTIVE point for nose
stuffiness. See how this image is just below the nose, and if we reverse the image, it is
just above the nose.
The image is perfect as is the channel, the relationship of the PC channel balancing
the ST. Even deeper, the PC is the part of the heart that is for circulation. Sinus
problems usually have a component of stagnant blood circulation.
Points 66.03 and 66.04 are used because the liver channel goes into the face and
nose. The foot images the face and nose. It is also an important channel to clear the
nose. There is a lot of blood flow in this channel. An illustration of this is when you
work out and your sinuses clear up almost magically. The blood flow opens up your
sinuses. That is how these points work, they move blood and oxygen, move Qi, and

Pain Case Studies with Distal Acupuncture Book Excerpt

Brad Whisnant and Deborah Bleecker
5

open the nose. Not only does the LV go internally to the face, but it also treats the SI,
LI, and GB in the face.
Point 77.08 is essentially ST 36. The face is imaged on the leg, the knee is the eyes,
and this point is very effective for opening up the nasal cavity.
Points 88.17, 88.18, and 88.19 are the most commonly used points for any sinus
issue in the Tung system. They are between the ST and GB channels. This means they
have indications of both these channels. They are located on the upper leg. The upper
leg images the face. They are on the five Zang line, the lung line. We know the lung
opens to the nose. These three points are quite miraculous.
This patient started breathing more clearly after the needles had been in for two
minutes. After fifteen minutes, I went back to check on her. Her nose had started to
become stuffy again. I re-stimulated the needles a little, and her nose cleared again.
It did not plug back up for the rest of the treatment. She left with no pressure or pain
in her face.
It was said that Master Tungs business cards said Guaranteed to heal sinus
diseases.

Pain Case Studies with Distal Acupuncture Book Excerpt

Brad Whisnant and Deborah Bleecker
6