A New Definition of an Acupuncture Meridian

Abstract

This article provides a new definition of an acupuncture meridian. It suggests that a meridian consists of a distal tract of tissue that is affected by organ function. In the 1960s, Kim discovered the primo vascular system and regarded the superficial primo vessels as equating to the meridians. Instead, this article suggests that the superficial primo vessels merely underlie the meridians, in that they enable their creation, which is why some meridians are said to occur along the paths of superficial primo vessels. But the meridians themselves do not have a dedicated anatomical structure; instead they are merely tracts of tissue whose normal function is impeded when the related abdominal organ is stressed. It is hypothesized that the organ information is communicated in electrical waves that may travel through the connective tissue sheaths of the superficial primo vessels. Hence, the primo vessels serve as an inadvertent transport for this information, but the organ information is independent of the physiological purpose of the primo vascular system, as are the resultant meridians. Keywords: Ling Shu, meridian definition, Nei Jing, primo vascular system, Su Wen