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Acupuncture is widely used for short-term musculoskeletal pain such as sprains, strains and acute back pain, but which points do practitioners actually choose, and why? This study set out to map current practice by reviewing the research literature.
The authors searched eight Chinese and English databases up to October 2025 and analysed 438 clinical studies that treated acute musculoskeletal pain using just one to three acupuncture points. Using bibliometric mapping and statistical analysis, they examined which points and techniques were favoured for different pain locations.
Several clear patterns emerged. Distal points (those away from the site of pain) were used most often, body acupuncture was the most common technique, and many practitioners used single-point prescriptions. ‘Motion-style’ acupuncture – needling while the patient gently moves the affected area – has become a notable recent focus, and Chinese studies frequently combined acupuncture with exercise.
Conclusion: for acute musculoskeletal pain, the literature points towards simple, distal point selection and, increasingly, combining needling with movement.
Source: Fang Y, Xiao R, Kang Y, and colleagues. Front Med (Lausanne). 2026. View on PubMed (PMID 42180731)
This is a plain-language summary of a published study, provided for general information; please refer to the original paper for full details.
