Fire needle therapy is a treatment method that uses special materials to create thick or thin needles, which are heated until red and then quickly inserted into acupuncture points or areas. This method combines the stimulation of acupuncture with the warming effect of moxibustion. Compared to regular acupuncture, fire needle therapy has significant advantages in treating painful and cold-related diseases, and it also shows good efficacy for conditions such as cysts and facial paralysis.
Fire needle therapy is a treatment method that uses special materials to create thick or thin needles, which are heated until red and then quickly inserted into acupuncture points or areas. This method combines the stimulation of acupuncture with the warming effect of moxibustion. Compared to regular acupuncture, fire needle therapy has significant advantages in treating painful and cold-related diseases, and it also shows good efficacy for conditions such as cysts and facial paralysis, making it popular among people. Those who are new to acupuncture may feel a bit scared, especially with the red-hot silver needles. What diseases can fire needles treat? Does it hurt? This article will provide a detailed explanation of this unique therapy.
Fire needle therapy has a long history.
As early as in the “Huangdi Neijing” (Yellow Emperor’s Inner Canon), there are written records of fire needle therapy. In the “Ling Shu: Guan Zhen” (Spiritual Pivot: Official Needles), fire needles are referred to as “burning needles” and fire needle therapy as “quenching puncture,” mentioning its ability to treat bi syndrome (such as arthritis), cold syndrome (such as wind-cold flu), muscle and tendon disorders (such as muscle strain), and bone diseases.
During the Han Dynasty, the application of fire needles became quite common. The peak development of fire needle therapy occurred during the Ming Dynasty. Representative works from that time, such as “Zhen Jiu Da Cheng” (Great Compendium of Acupuncture and Moxibustion), “Zhen Jiu Ju Ying” (Essence of Acupuncture and Moxibustion), and “Ming Yi Lei An” (Cases of Famous Doctors), all mentioned fire needles, providing comprehensive and detailed discussions on the tools, heating, puncture methods, efficacy, and contraindications of fire needle therapy, establishing a theoretical system for treating diseases with fire needles.
Doctors in the Qing Dynasty expanded the treatment scope of fire needles. For instance, the famous doctor Wu Yiluo used fire needles to treat ophthalmic diseases, dispelling the common misconception that fire needles are dangerous. The surgical expert Chen Shigong proposed using fire needles to treat lymphatic tuberculosis and phlegm nodules (such as lipomas), while Wu Qian believed that fire needles could treat diseases caused by pathogenic qi obstructing the skin and joints.
After thousands of years of research and clinical practice by various doctors, fire needle therapy has now become a unique medical system within acupuncture.
What do fire needles look like?
Since the 1960s, Master He Purin introduced fire needle therapy and bloodletting therapy based on the fine needle technique. In the 1980s, he developed the theory of “many diseases are due to qi stagnation, and the method uses three openings,” establishing the “He’s Acupuncture Three Openings Method”. This acupuncture treatment system includes the “micro-opening method” represented by fine needle techniques, the “warming opening method” represented by fire needle techniques, and the “strong opening method” represented by bloodletting therapy, emphasizing the organic combination of various methods for symptomatic use, achieving good clinical results, and creating the unique He’s fire needle instruments.
When using fire needles, they must first be heated to high temperatures until the needle body turns red, and then quickly inserted into specific acupuncture points or areas of the body. Therefore, the materials used must be high-temperature resistant, hard, and sturdy. The materials for making fire needles differ from regular fine needles, using tungsten-manganese alloy cold-drawn into wire, which is then processed into fire needles. Thus, the tips of fire needles are not very sharp, being pointed but not sharp, slightly rounded and blunt. Since fire needles are inserted into the skin after being heated red and require repeated burning, the needle handle is insulated for easy handling by the doctor, ensuring stable, precise, and quick operation.
Due to the differences in patients’ constitutions and symptoms, as well as the different acupuncture points selected, fire needles are categorized into three types: fine fire needles, medium-thick fire needles, and thick fire needles. The fine fire needle, with a diameter of 0.5 mm, is mainly used for facial acupuncture points, as the facial nerves and blood vessels are abundant, and pain sensitivity is high, so using fine fire needles can reduce discomfort. Besides the face, fine fire needles are also suitable for patients with weak constitutions and the elderly. Medium-thick fire needles are used for other acupuncture points or areas excluding the face and thin muscle tissues. Thick fire needles are primarily used for puncturing diseased areas, such as abdominal masses, hard lumps, and skin ulcers or abscesses.
Introduction to Fire Needle Techniques
The point-puncture method uses fine or medium-thick fire needles, with a shallower insertion depth than fine needles.
The painful point-puncture method selects medium-thick fire needles, with a slightly deeper insertion.
The dense puncture method’s density depends on the severity of the condition, generally spaced 1 cm apart; if the condition is severe, it can be slightly denser, while if mild, it can be slightly sparser. If the skin at the lesion site is thick and hard, a thick fire needle can be used; otherwise, a medium-thick fire needle should be used. The insertion depth should ideally just reach normal tissue; both too shallow and too deep are inappropriate.
The surrounding puncture method uses medium-thick fire needles, with a spacing of 1 cm to 1.5 cm between needles. The depth of insertion depends on the depth of the lesion; deeper lesions require deeper punctures, while shallower lesions require shallower punctures.
Needle retention involves leaving the needle in the acupuncture point or area for 1 to 5 minutes before removing it. During the retention period, the doctor can apply various tonifying or draining techniques, or simply retain the needle without any technique, allowing the body’s vital energy to recover.
Does fire needle therapy hurt?
Some people, although they have undergone acupuncture treatment for pain, may feel nervous upon seeing the red-hot fire needle and may question whether fire needle therapy is more painful than regular acupuncture and whether it will leave scars.
Experts explain: “Before the procedure, patients should be patiently informed about the pain-free nature of fire needles and the treatment’s effects, alleviating their doubts about efficacy and fear of pain, instilling confidence in them to accept treatment.”
“Fire needle therapy primarily uses quick punctures, with the insertion and removal of the needle taking only one-tenth of a second. The faster the puncture, the less pain experienced, and the better the therapeutic effect. When treating facial diseases, scarring is also less likely.” Experts say: “To achieve this, Master He summarized three key points: red, precise, and fast.”
What do red, precise, and fast mean?
The term “red” refers to quickly inserting the needle into the acupuncture point or area while the needle body is glowing red. This allows the fire needle to have strong penetrating power and low resistance, shortening the insertion time and reducing discomfort. On the other hand, performing the procedure while the needle is glowing red provides strong stimulation and better therapeutic effects.
The term “precise” refers to accurate insertion. Once the fire needle is inserted, it cannot be moved; if the insertion is inaccurate, it cannot be adjusted, so to achieve good results, the insertion must be accurate. Doctors usually mark the puncture site to assist in accurate insertion.
The term “fast” refers to quick insertion. Quick actions can minimize the patient’s discomfort. To achieve this, doctors practice their basic skills regularly, focusing on strength and wrist power, and combining these with overall body strength and qigong to make the insertion faster and more agile.
Additionally, in the past, heating needles often used alcohol lamps, and once the heat source was removed, the needle cooled quickly, making insertion prone to tissue damage. To improve this issue, Master He used hemostatic forceps to hold burning alcohol cotton balls, allowing for simultaneous burning and insertion. This made heating the needles more flexible and convenient, significantly reducing heat loss and ensuring treatment efficacy.
What diseases can fire needles treat?
The effects of fire needles are closely related to their mechanisms of action. The therapeutic mechanism of fire needles lies in using warm stimulation on acupuncture points and areas to enhance the body’s yang energy, invigorate the vital energy, regulate the internal organs, stimulate the meridian qi, warm the meridians, and promote blood circulation and qi flow. Applying these effects clinically can assist in tonifying yang, lifting sinking yang, dissipating masses, promoting tissue regeneration, draining pus, relieving spasms, alleviating pain, and stopping itching, thus treating various diseases.
“Fire needles are often used based on specific conditions and lesion locations, selecting appropriate meridian points, painful points, or directly puncturing the lesion.” Experts explain.
Meridian point selection. Based on clinical symptoms, doctors first differentiate and classify the condition, then select points along the meridians, applying fire needles to treat diseases through the regulating effects of the meridians.
Pain point selection. Doctors will look for obvious tender points at the lesion site and apply fire needles to these points, using warm stimulation to promote smooth meridian flow and alleviate pain.
Puncturing at or around the lesion. Since the formation of lesions is often due to local qi and blood stagnation, stimulating with fire needles can improve circulation, enhance tissue metabolism, eliminate lesions, and relieve diseases.
Depending on the selected points and lesion locations, doctors will choose corresponding methods from point-puncture, painful point-puncture, dispersive puncture, dense puncture, and surrounding puncture methods for treatment.
The point-puncture method involves selecting specific acupuncture points or obvious tender points at the lesion site for fire needle application, mainly suitable for internal medicine diseases.
The painful point-puncture method uses fire needles to stimulate tender points, promoting smooth meridian flow and qi circulation, thus alleviating pain, mainly suitable for muscle and joint disorders and various neuralgia.
The dispersive puncture method involves applying fire needles sparsely at the lesion site, warming yang and benefiting qi, improving local qi and blood circulation, mainly suitable for treating itching, alleviating numbness, spasms, and pain.
The dense puncture method involves densely stimulating the local lesion, mainly suitable for proliferative and keratinized skin diseases, such as neurodermatitis.
The surrounding puncture method involves puncturing around the lesion, with most insertion points located at the junction of the lesion and normal tissue, mainly suitable for dermatological and surgical conditions.
If needle retention is required, during the retention period, as the heat from the fire needle gradually dissipates, the doctor will use tonifying or draining techniques to expel pathogenic qi and restore vital energy. This method has the effect of expelling necrotic tissue and draining pus, suitable for diseases involving necrotic tissue and abnormal proliferation, such as lymphatic tuberculosis, tumors, and cysts.
Advantages and contraindications of fire needles
Ancient practitioners believed that fire needles were only suitable for expelling cold and should not be used for heat conditions. However, He Purin argued that during the development of any disease, qi stagnation is an insurmountable pathological mechanism. When meridian changes occur, “qi stagnation leads to disease, qi flow leads to regulation, regulation leads to recovery; acupuncture treatment is about regulating qi mechanisms.”
In practice, He Purin expanded the range of diseases treatable with fire needles to over 100 types, proving that fire needle therapy has the ability to guide and disperse qi, using heat to clear heat and detoxify.
He also employed the method of shallow puncturing with fine fire needles to treat facial muscle spasms and stubborn facial paralysis. “The advantage of fire needles lies in their ability to treat difficult diseases that fine needles cannot reach.” Experts explain that in clinical practice, fire needle therapy is particularly effective for two types of conditions: one is painful diseases, such as cervical and lumbar pain; the other is what traditional Chinese medicine refers to as “cold conditions,” such as diseases caused by external wind-cold.
Although the application range of fire needles is broad, attention should also be paid to their contraindications during use. “Patients who are overly tense, hungry, fatigued, or intoxicated should avoid fire needle therapy to prevent adverse reactions such as fainting; treatment can be performed once their issues are resolved.” Experts explain.
Additionally, before using fire needles, patients should inform the doctor of their medical history; for instance, those with diabetes may have slow healing at the needle site, increasing the risk of infection. Certain areas, such as major blood vessels, internal organs, and key organs, are also contraindicated for fire needle use. Furthermore, after fire needle treatment, patients should avoid bathing on the same day and refrain from eating raw or cold foods.
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