What Shousanli does
Shousanli is treated here as a practical point rather than a curiosity: where it sits, how it is needled, what the tradition says it does, and the skin conditions in this database that name it.
Actions
- Regulates the Intestines
- Removes Obstructions from the Channel
- Tonifies Qi
Location
Two cun measured from the landmark shown in the diagram and the location text.
How to find it
Find the bony landmark first, then feel for the hollow or tender spot the location describes. The point is usually sensitive when pressed.
Deqi
De qi at this point is felt as local distension, heaviness or aching, and may travel a short way along the channel.
A cun is a proportional body measurement, not a fixed length: one cun is about the width of the thumb at the knuckle, 1.5 cun about two finger widths, and 3 cun about the width of four fingers. On an average adult one cun is roughly one inch, but it scales with the person, which is why the texts measure in cun rather than centimetres.
Technique
Needling
Angle: 90 degrees, perpendicular Depth: Standard depth one to one and a half cun. Direction: Needle in the direction the location describes.
Moxibustion
Moxibustion is used with the same restrictions as needling at this point.
Skin uses
Shousanli is a Large Intestine point on the forearm, recorded to regulate the Intestines, remove channel obstruction and tonify Qi, and its classical description places it two cun below Quchi. Its skin reading is indirect: tonifying Qi and removing channel obstruction are traditionally linked with a surface that heals slowly or feels congested, and the forearm location gives it a local field for lesions in that area. Its general indications are digestive and musculoskeletal, not skin. Since no skin-specific classical indication is recorded for it, what follows is an indirect reading, not trial evidence.
No skin-specific classical indication is recorded for this point. The rationale above is an indirect, traditional reading of the point, not a promise of benefit.
Point classifications
| Classification | Value |
|---|---|
| Channel | Meridian |
Classical record
Shousanli is located 2 cun below Quchi, where pressing causes the flesh to rise at the tip of the prominent muscle.
Classical citation for this point.
When shoulder pain connects to the umbilicus without rest, seek Shousanli in the hand
Classical citation for this point.
Safety
Who should treat this point
Acupuncture and moxibustion are practitioner procedures. This page is educational and is not a guide to self-treatment.
Caution
Safety flags: contraindicated or restricted in pregnancy; a nerve runs in the deeper layer. Needle with care, adjust depth to the patient's build, and modify or avoid the point where a flag applies.
Deficiency and constitution
In a depleted patient the point is worked gently and briefly.
Before treatment
Educational reference only. Skin that is spreading, painful, blistering or accompanied by fever needs medical assessment.
Modern evidence and safety
General references for acupuncture safety and skin evidence. They are not specific to this point, and they are not a claim that needling it treats any condition.
- Acupuncture-related adverse events: systematic review and meta-analyses of prospective clinical studies. BMJ Open, 2021. PMID: 34489268.
- Acupuncture for atopic dermatitis: a systematic review and meta-analysis. BMJ Open, 2024. PMID: 39638592.
- Manual acupuncture for the treatment of chronic spontaneous urticaria: a systematic review and meta-analysis. International Journal of Surgery, 2025. PMID: 40696933.
- Acupuncture in Dermatology: An Update to a Systematic Review. Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, 2021. PMID: 32955916.
Evidence note
No controlled trial of this treatment in skin conditions was identified for this entry. What is described here rests on the classical and later materia medica record and on traditional clinical use, not on controlled trial evidence, and it is not a prediction of benefit. Where skin-specific research does exist it is linked above.
Common questions
What does Shousanli do in skin practice?
It is used where the skin picture includes the conditions it is used with, always as part of a combination chosen for the pattern.
How is it needled?
90° (Perpendicular) / 45° (Oblique). Standard depth 0.8 - 1.5 cun. De qi: Local distention and soreness (酸胀), heaviness at the point, with sensation often extending distally toward the hand and dorsum. Strong deqi is typically easy to obtain due to the fleshy muscle mass at this location.
Is it safe?
Classical texts caution against use during the ninth month of pregnancy. The radial nerve deep branch passes nearby (approximately 1.2-2.4 cm deep), so excessive manipulation or very deep needling should be performed with awareness. This point is often naturally tender to palpation - palpate to confirm location before needling.