Huangmen (BL51)
Huangmen (BL51), “Vitals Gate”, is a point on the Bladder meridian. It is point 51 of the 67 on the channel. Moves Qi in the middle Jiao and benefits the breast.
Location
In the lumbar region, level with the lower border of the L1 spinous process, 3 cun lateral to the posterior median line.
Functions according to tradition
Moves Qi in the middle Jiao and benefits the breast.
Traditional indications
- Abdominal pain
- Constipation
- Mastitis
- Lower back pain
Indications described by tradition; they do not amount to proven clinical effectiveness for each one.
Precautions
Needle obliquely towards the spine: the kidney lies beneath at this level.
Points on other channels with similar indications
They share several traditional indications with this point. Comparing them helps understand why one or the other is chosen.
- KI15 Zhongzhu (Kidney): Abdominal pain, Constipation, Lower back pain
- KI17 Shangqu (Kidney): Abdominal pain, Constipation
- LI8 Xialian (Large Intestine): Abdominal pain, Mastitis
- SP13 Fushe (Spleen): Abdominal pain, Constipation
- SP15 Daheng (Spleen): Abdominal pain, Constipation
- SP16 Fuai (Spleen): Abdominal pain, Constipation
Point profile
- Code
- BL51
- Pinyin name
- Huāng Mén
- Characters
- 肓门
- Translation
- Vitals Gate
- Meridian
- Bladder
- Element
- Water
- Topics
- Digestion, Breast, Lower back
Health notice. Educational and study content. It describes concepts of Traditional Chinese Medicine and does not replace diagnosis or treatment by a healthcare professional. Needling, medicinal herbs and invasive techniques must be applied by trained professionals. Safety guide.
