Golfer's Elbow (Medial Epicondylitis)

How Chinese medicine differentiates golfer's elbow, the four patterns you'll actually meet in practice, and the points for each. Acupuncture only — no herbs.

This page is educational, for practitioners and students — it is not a diagnostic tool and does not replace a proper in-person assessment. Pain with numbness/tingling into the fingers, or weakness of grip, needs medical evaluation to rule out nerve involvement before acupuncture is considered.

General Acupuncture Points

Acupuncture points traditionally used for golfer's elbow — 8 key points, used across the patterns below rather than tied to just one.

Point	Key action
L.I.-11	Clears Heat, resolves Dampness, cools Blood.
HE-3	Removes obstructions from the channel. Calms the Mind. Clears Heat.
L.I.-4	Expels exterior Wind, stops pain, removes obstructions from the channel.
G.B.-34	Promotes the smooth flow of Liver-Qi. Benefits the sinews. Removes obstruction from the channel.
P-3	Clears Heat and cools Blood. Invigorates Blood and eliminates stasis.
ST-36	Benefits Stomach and Spleen, tonifies Qi and Blood.
SP-10	Cools Blood, invigorates Blood and eliminates stasis.
SP-6	Strengthens the Spleen, resolves Dampness, nourishes Blood and Yin.

The Four Patterns

↑ reinforcing ↓ reducing ⊥ even method.

1. Qi and Blood Stagnation

Clinical manifestations: Fixed, stabbing pain at the inner elbow with swelling and pinpoint tenderness at the medial epicondyle; pain worsens with pressure and arm use; irritability or chest tightness may accompany it.

Tongue: Purple or dark with stasis spots. Pulse: Wiry, Choppy.

Treatment principle: Invigorate Blood and dispel stasis, moving Qi to relieve the fixed elbow pain.

L.I.-11 ↓ HE-3 ↓ L.I.-4 ↓ G.B.-34 ↓

Note: no moxa. This site's \"Liver-Blood stasis\" slide is gynecological/hepatic-framed with no elbow-injury content, so no pattern link is given here.

2. Painful Obstruction with Wind-Cold-Damp

Clinical manifestations: Aching, heavy pain worse in cold or damp weather; stiffness and limited range of motion; heaviness or numbness in the forearm; swelling without redness or warmth.

Tongue: Pale, slightly swollen, teeth marks, white greasy coating. Pulse: Wiry, Tight, or Soggy, Slow.

Treatment principle: Dispel Wind-Dampness, tonify Qi, and invigorate Blood to unblock the channel.

P-3 ↓ G.B.-34 ↓ L.I.-4 ↓

Note: moxa applicable. No deck on this site has a joint/limb Wind-Cold-Damp category, so no pattern link is given here.

3. Qi Deficiency causing Blood Stagnation

Clinical manifestations: Dull, fixed pain worsened by pressure; arm and grip weakness with easy fatigue; pain worse at night or after exertion; a pale complexion with spontaneous sweating and shortness of breath.

Tongue: Pale with possible purplish tinge and stasis spots, teeth marks. Pulse: Deep, Fine, Choppy.

Treatment principle: Tonify Qi while invigorating Blood and dispelling stasis, unblocking the channels and collaterals.

Tonify Qi

ST-36 ↑

Invigorate Blood

L.I.-11 ↓ SP-10 ↓

Note: moxa applicable on the Tonify-Qi point. No deck on this site combines Qi deficiency with local Blood stagnation as its own picture, so no pattern link is given here.

4. Painful Obstruction due to Damp-Heat in the Channels

Clinical manifestations: Pain with local redness and heat at the inner elbow; hot, swollen tissue; pain relieved by cold compresses but worsened by warmth; a heavy sensation in the forearm; thirst with irritability.

Tongue: Red, possibly swollen, yellow greasy coating. Pulse: Slippery, Rapid.

Treatment principle: Clear Heat and drain Dampness, unblocking the channel and relieving the painful obstruction.

L.I.-11 ↓ SP-6 ↓ G.B.-34 ↓

Note: no moxa. No deck on this site has a joint/limb Painful Obstruction category, so no pattern link is given here.

Related conditions

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