Acupuncture therapy is a method of treating certain diseases by using various types of needles and techniques to stimulate certain acupoints in affected animals.
1. Commonly used needles and acupuncture methods
(1) Filiform needle
It is made of high-quality stainless steel or alloy. Its characteristics are: the needle is sharp and the needle body is slender. It is suitable for deep or penetrating puncture. It has strong stimulation, light tissue damage and is not easy to be infected. The needle body is smooth and elastic, and the diameter is generally 0.16~1.5mm. The needle body length is 1.3cm, 2.5cm, 3cm, 4.5cm, 6cm, 10cm, 12cm, 15cm, 20cm, 30cm, etc. The needle handle is fixed with thin metal wire wound into a flat head type and a coiled dragon type. It is mostly used for deep puncture in fleshy areas, acupuncture anesthesia, and white needle acupoints in large and small animals such as cats. In addition, filiform needles can be used for flat puncture points, that is, after inserting the needle under the skin, it can be inserted into several nearby acupoints to enhance the curative effect. .
(2) Round sharp needle
It is made of stainless steel. Its characteristics are: the shape and structure are similar to the filiform needle, but the needle body is thicker, the needle tip length is 4~10cm, and the needle handle includes flat head type, coiled dragon type, octagonal type and ball bead type. Round sharp needles are mostly used for acupuncture points that do not bleed, so they are also called white needles. They are easy to insert and remove quickly, and are suitable for needle retention and needle movement. It is often used on acupuncture points with thick skin and plump muscles. Generally, the needle is retained for a period of time after the needle is inserted. During this period, the needle is lifted and inserted every 9 minutes to increase the amount of stimulation and improve the curative effect.
(3) Three-edged needle
They are mostly made of high-quality steel or alloy. The needle tip is triangular, the needle body is rod-shaped, and the needle is sharp. It is divided into large and small types according to the thickness and length. It is often used to acupuncture acupuncture points on the veins or venous plexus of smaller blood vessels such as Sanjiang, Tongguan, Yutang, etc., or to puncture Fenshui points. The small triangular needle has a hole in the needle tail and can also be used in place of sutures.
(4) Wide needle
It is made of high-quality steel. The needle tip is like a spear point, the blade is sharp, and the needle length is 8~12cm. According to the width of the needle, it is divided into three specifications: large, medium and small. The needle tip of the large wide needle is about 8mm, and it is used to open the jugular vein, belt vein, kidney hall and other points of horses, cattle, sheep and other large livestock, as well as to break the skin and replenish qi, and to puncture the yellow and swollen areas. Medium-wide needle, with a needle tip width of about 6 mm, is used for piercing the chest, tail, and hoof points of horses and cattle. The tip of the small wide needle is about 4mm wide and is mainly used on the wrist, taiyang, eye and other points of horses and cattle. Wide needles are mostly used on bleeding acupuncture points, so they are also called blood needles. In addition, small wide needles can also be used instead of round sharp needles for acupuncture at non-blood needle points, especially when acupuncture is used to puncture cattle and pig points.
(5) Threading a yellow needle
Most of them are made of high-quality steel. The specifications and shape of the needle are similar to that of a large wide needle. There is a small hole at the end of the needle, which can be used to pass through horsetail or brown rope. It is used for hanging yellow or randomly pricking yellow swelling. It can also be used in place of a large wide needle.
(6) Fire needle
Mostly made of high-quality steel, the needle tip is round and slightly blunt, the needle body is smooth, and the diameter is about 3mm. Wing type, kidnapper type, bakelite type and spiral type, etc., especially the panlong type, are versatile. Some have a layer of asbestos insulation material padded inside the needle handle. Fire acupuncture is mostly used to treat rheumatism and chronic lameness. The needle should be inserted shallowly and the needle handle should not be too heavy to prevent the affected animal from shaking its skin and causing the needle to fall off.
(7) Air-clamping needle
It is a long flat needle with a blunt and rounded spear tip, made of bamboo or alloy. The needle body is 28~36cm long, about 6mm wide and 3mm thick. It is specially used for penetrating air holes in large livestock.
(8) Three curved needles
Also known as Hun Jing Chong Needle and Kaitian Needle. It is made of high-quality steel. The needle tip is round and sharp. The length of the needle tip is about 5mm. The back of the needle tip is bent at a right angle. The length of the needle body is about 6~12cm. The needle handle is mostly in the shape of a coiled dragon. It is specially used to treat equine legworm disease.
(9) Water pipes
It is generally a small tapered tube made of copper or aluminum, shaped like a pen cap, about 5cm long, with a sealed tip and a blunt round shape. The tube body has 8 to 10 small holes with a diameter of 2.5mm. It is specially used for draining ascites at Yunmen point and treating it. The water stops at the navel.
(10) Needle holder
There are two commonly used needle holders, which are made of hard materials.
1. The needle hammer is about 35cm long, with a thick hammer section and an oval hammer head at the top. A horizontal hole is drilled through the center of the hammer head for inserting the pin. There is a saw slit from the hammer head to 2/5 of the hammer body, and the pituitary gland is covered with a leather or rattan movable hoop. When the hoop is pushed towards the hammer head, the saw slit will be tightened, which can firmly fix the needle body. When the hoop is pushed towards the taper handle, the saw slit will rebound and loosen, allowing the needle to be removed.
2. The length of the needle bar is 24~30cm and the diameter is about 4cm. Cut off half of one end of the bar at about 7cm and dig a needle groove along the center of the longitudinal axis. When using, fasten the needle in the needle groove with a string, and the needle tip can be exposed to an appropriate length before acupuncture is applied.
Needle hammers and needle wands are often used to place chest hall points, Falcon Vein points, and Hootou points, or when large-wide acupuncture is used to puncture yellow and swollen areas. The operation is extremely convenient.
