Anatomical Evidence of Acupuncture Meridians in the Human Extracellular Matrix: Results from a Macroscopic and Microscopic Interdisciplinary Multicentre Study on Human Corpses.


Author: Maurer N1, Nissel H2, Egerbacher M3, Gornik E4, Schuller P4, Traxler H5

Affiliation: <sup>1</sup>Johannes Bischko Institut für Akupunktur/Neurologisches Zentrum am Krankenhaus Rosenhügel Wien, 1130 Wien, Riedelgasse 5, Private Practice for General Medicine, Kupelwiesergasse 16, 1130 Wien, Austria.

<sup>2</sup>Johannes Bischko Institut für Akupunktur/Neurologisches Zentrum am Krankenhaus Rosenhügel Wien, 1130 Wien, Riedelgasse 5, Private Practice for Internal Medicine, Schleifgasse 7, 1210 Wien, Austria.

<sup>3</sup>Institute of Histology and Embryology, Department of Pathobiology, University of Veterinary Medicine, Veterinärplatz 1, 1210 Vienna, Austria.

<sup>4</sup>Institute for Solid State Electronics, Vienna University of Technology, Gußhausstraße 25-25a (Gebäude CH), 1040 Wien, Austria.

<sup>5</sup>Center for Anatomy and Cell Biology, Division of Anatomy, Medical University of Vienna, Währinger Straße 13, 1090 Wien, Austria.
Conference/Journal: Evid Based Complement Alternat Med.
Date published: 2019 Mar 21
Other:
 Volume ID: 2019   ,  Pages: 6976892   ,  Special Notes: doi: 10.1155/2019/6976892. eCollection  2019.   ,  Word Count: 150  
    For more than 2500 years, acupuncture has been applied to support the healing of different diseases and physiologic malfunctions. Although various theories of the meridian system and mechanisms were formulated to explain the functional basis of acupuncture, the anatomical basis for the concept of meridians has not been resolved. The aim of the present study was to search for replicable anatomical structures that could relate to meridians. To this end, four human specimens and additionally two lower legs were dissected anatomically. Our study found evidence that acupuncture meridians were part of the human extracellular matrix and that fascia was an important part of the anatomic substrate of acupuncture meridians. At the same time, we found vessel-nerve-bundles, which were hypothesized to account for 80% of acupuncture points, only in a few acupuncture points. Therefore, our findings contradict the theory that acupuncture points are only located along the nervous channels.



PMID: 31015853 PMCID: PMC6448339 DOI: 10.1155/2019/6976892