Acupuncture has been reported to be effective for the treatment of frozen shoulder or shoulder arthritis.

 In traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), it is termed ‘shoulder at the age of 50 years’.
Frozen shoulder is used to denote a limitation of shoulder motion, without abnormalities of the joint surface, fracture, or dislocation. The onset of frozen shoulder is usually gradual and idiopathic, but it may be acute and associated with a previous history of minor injury to the shoulder joint. The disease occurs mainly in middle-aged individuals and is usually self-limiting, but the duration and severity may vary greatly.



 Acupuncture has been used for the treatment of clinical disorders in Asia for more than 5000 years.
 It is now also valued in modern medical practice as a therapy for many medical problems, particularly where current western medicine is either ineffective or contraindicated. Acupuncture has gained increasing attention with respect to the treatment of chronic pain. Lewith and Machin’s review of the efficacy of acupuncture therapy for chronic pain concluded that ‘real’ acupuncture treatment was significantly better than both ‘sham’ acupuncture and placebo.

Moreover, acupuncture has been shown to cause fewer adverse reactions than the use of opioid analgesics and antiinflammatory medications. Richardson and Vincent found good evidence from controlled studies that acupuncture provided effective, short-term pain relief, for both acute and chronic pain.


 Classical acupuncture prescriptions for frozen shoulder are designed—by selection of local, distal, and tender (ashi) points according to the course of the meridians—to relax the muscles, disperse pathogenic factors such as excess wind, cold, and dampness,
remove obstruction in the affected meridians and their collaterals, and to regulate the Qi and blood.
 A combination of local and distal classical Chinese acupoints are commonly used for the treatment of frozen shoulder.45 Local points include GB 21 (jianjing), LI 15 (jianyu), LI 14 (Binao), TE 14 (jianliao), and SI 9 (jianzhen). Distal points utilised are LI 4 (hegu), LI 11
(Quchi), St 38 (Tiaokou),37,46 GB 34 (Yanglingquan),39 and Zhongping.36 Zhongping is an extra acupoint lying along the stomach meridian, the so-called Yang Ming Meridian.

 The stomach meridian has its Qi running across the shoulder. It is a Yang meridian
in balance with its Yin counterpart, an imbalance of which can cause the Bi syndrome.

 Acupuncture applied to this acupoint can relax the tendon and remove obstruction in the meridians to relieve pain. Contralateral needling, characterised by the contralateral selection of points is very effective in the treatment of shoulder pain. The mechanism of
action is possibly the stimulation of Shu points, and hence the meridians and collaterals, on the healthy side. This, in turn, is thought to excite the meridians and collaterals on the affected side, which have been in a state of stagnation of Qi and blood, thus, to an extent, clearing and activating the meridians and collaterals, and relieving pain.


 According to TCM, if a part of the body is not moved, then the Qi will not circulate through it, leading to stagnation. If this occurs in the shoulder joint, the joint becomes stiff and painful. Physical exercise is important in harmonising the body (Yin) and the spirit (Yang), as well as the Qi, helping to clear and activate the meridians and collaterals. This is essential for internal harmony between various organ systems, as well as between the body and the natural environment.