Reply To: Acupuncture Bootcamp
Answers interspersed below:
Question 14: the brachial artery must be avoided at which of the following acupuncture points?
– LU5
– LI11
– HT3
– PC3
It says the correct answer is HT3, but deadman says PC3?
>>This question has been repaired. PC3 should be the correct answer.
Question 66: Which of the following is the correct time associated with Yin within Yang?
6:00pm – 12:00am
6:00am – 12:00pm
12:00pm – 6:00pm (correct answer)
12:00am – 6:00am
I honestly guessed on this question, and I’m trying to figure out what the answers to the other options would be. I’m guessing yin within yin is 6:00pm to 12:00am, 12:00am to 6:00am is yang within yin, and 6:00am to 12:00pm is yang within yang?
I’ve heard of noon being full yang and midnight being full yin, but I don’t recall seeing these time ranges before.
>>You are correct!
Question 70: Defensive Qi (Wei Qi) circulates 25 times during the day and 25 times during the night. What is the correct order of circulation in the night?
– Liver to Heart to Lung to Spleen to Kidney
– Kidney to Heart to Lung to Liver to Spleen (correct answer)
– Heart to Liver to Lung to Kidney to Spleen
– Lung to Liver to Spleen to Kidney to Heart
I don’t know if it’s my tired brain but I just don’t know how to approach this question or how to get to the right answer.
>>Wei Qi circulates 50 times in 24 hours: 25 times during the day and 25
times during the night. By day it circulates in the Exterior of the body,
and at night it circulates in the Yin organs. In the daytime, it circulates on the Exterior in the Yang superficial channels from the Tai Yang to Shao Yang to Yang Ming channels. This flow of Wei Qi from the Interior towards the Exterior opens the
eyes and wakes us up in the morning. At night, Wei Qi flows into the Yin organs, first to the Kidneys, then to Heart, Lung, Liver, Spleen (in the order of the Controlling
sequence of the Five Elements). “When Wei Qi flows into the Yin at night, it enters the Kidneys, then the Heart, then the Lungs, then the Liver, then the Spleen and back
into the Kidneys.” – Ling Shu, Chapter 37
Question 73: According to Zang Fu diagnostic theory, which of the following is the best diagnosis for a patient presenting with a cough with dry, scanty, sticky sputum, a weak and hoarse voice, a tickly throat, tiredness, dislike of speaking, night sweating, a tongue without coating, and a Floating (Fu) and Deficient (Xu) pulse?
– Lung Yin Deficiency (correct answer)
– Lung Qi Deficiency
– Phlegm in the Lungs
– Lung and Kidney Yin Deficiency
I got the correct answer here, but I more just wanted to inquire about the 4th option, Lung and Kidney Yin Deficiency. In the video guide for cardinal symptoms, it said that Lung Yin Deficiency is assumed to be Lung Dryness with Kidney Yin Deficiency, but instead of saying that we just say Lung Yin Deficiency. I just wanted to double check and see if that’s what I should be following still, since Lung and Kidney Yin deficiency was also an option.
>>You are correct that it is implied and you have successfully combined a Dry Lung alongside Yin Deficiency.
Question 81: Stiffness, rigidity, and sudden muscle contraction is a manifestation of which of the following?
– external wind of the joints
– external wind in the channels (correct answer)
– external wind at the skin level
– external wind in the sinews
I was debating between external wind in the sinews and external wind in the channels and I’m just confusing myself here, do we even have external wind in the sinews? haha. Just hoping for a bit of clarification.
>>The sinews are the conduits of Wei Qi which warms, protects, activates upright posture, and activates movement. This is where the External Wind “fights” the Wei Qi and causes body aches.
Question 87: Difficult in performing a bowel movement when the stools are not dry is most likely due to which of the following?
– Cold in the Large Intestine
– Spleen Qi Deficiency
– Stomach Heat
– Liver Qi Stagnation (correct answer)
I was debating between Spleen Qi Deficiency and Liver Qi Stagnation here. Spleen Qi deficiency because there wouldn’t be a lot of peristalsis, and Liver Qi stagnation because things just are stuck and not moving well. But in the Biomed guidebook, it says that Qi stagnation constipation is “dry, sluggish bowel movements”, which made me opt for Spleen Qi Deficiency instead, since dryness wasn’t mentioned with Qi Def. Just hoping for a bit of guidance here.
>>Interesting. If I were to picture a “Spleen Qi Deficiency” bowel issue, it would not be that the movement is sluggish; instead, it would make the stool pencil-like and, in general, soft. Stomach Qi Deficiency could cause lack of motility, but not Spleen Qi Deficiency. Other than dryness, the Liver is the primary concern in TCM-style acupuncture when there is difficulty in bowel movements due to its ability to counter-flow an organ’s Qi.
Question 88: According to Zang Fu diagnostic theory, which of the following is the best diagnosis for a patient presenting with distention of the epigastrium and hypochondrium, hiccups, sighing, nausea, vomiting, belching, churning feelings in the stomach, irritability, breast distention, a normal tongue, and a Wiry (Xuan) pulse?
– Rebellious Liver Qi (correct answer)
– Rebellious Stomach Qi
– Stomach Qi Stagnation
– Spleen Qi Sinking
I had a note from the cardinal symptoms video that Stomach Qi Stagnation can also be called Rebellious Liver Qi, so since Stomach Qi Stagnation and Rebellious Liver Qi are both options here, I’m wondering how to differentiate those two.
>> Good question. If Stomach Qi Stagnation was present as a primary there wouldn’t be so many Liver-Qi Stagnation signs. Stomach Qi Stagnation on its own would look like: distention of the epigastrium, hiccups, nausea, vomiting, belching. Once we see hypochondriac distension, sighing, irritability, and breast distention, we can blame the Liver.
Question 96: Oily sweat on the forehead indicates which of the following?
– Heart Yin Deficiency
– Damp-heat
– Lung Qi Deficiency
– Yang Collapse (correct answer)
My Maciocia Diagnosis text says on page 167 that sweat like oil drops on the forehead is yang collapse, but then page 362 says that oily sweat on forehead indicates a collapse of yin. I know that collapse of Yang is the only correct answer there, but just curious if it could it be either?
>>There is a lack of consistency in the symptoms between texts. Yang collapse has profuse oily forehead sweat, whereas Yin collapse has scanty and sticky forehead sweat.
Question 98: According to Zang Fu diagnostic theory, Large Intestine Cold would present with which manifestations of stools?
– Straining to pass stools that are small and hard
– Watery loose stools without an odour
– Pain, foul-smelling loose stools
– Loose stools like duck droppings (correct answer)
I was debating between watery loose stools without an odour and loose stools like duck droppings, but thought with watery without an odour quality would be a sign of cold. I checked my Maciocia and see now that the large intestine cold pattern has the correct answer word for word, but what would watery loose stools without odour be for?
>>Let’s talk about ducks for a second! Duck droppings aren’t all water as they contain a brown stain in them. Watery, loose stools without an odour would signal more Spleen/Kidney Yang Deficiency.
Question 99: According to Zang Fu diagnostic theory, which of the following is the best diagnosis for a patient with a sore and weak lower back, weak knees, frequent clear urination that is abundant but with a weak-stream and dribbling after urination, nocturnal emissions without dreams, feelings of cold, a dragging down feeling in the lower abdomen, a pale tongue, and a Deep (Chen) and Weak (Ruo) pulse?
– Kidney Qi not firm (correct answer)
– Kidney Qi deficiency and Spleen Qi sinking
– Kidney Failing to receive Qi
– Kidney Yang Deficiency
Is it normal to see symptoms of cold (feeling cold) with Kidney Qi not firm (deficiency)? I find myself getting tripped up between Kidney Qi Deficiency, Kidney Yang Deficiency, and Kidney Essence deficiency frequently.
>>Kidney Qi Not Firm has Spleen and Kidney Yang symptoms along with fluids leaking out (such as urine and sperm).
Question 106: Scanty urination, a dry mouth at night, and a dry throat indicates that a Body Fluid Deficiency is affecting which of the following Zang Fu organs?
– Lung
– Kidney (correct answer)
– Bladder
– Stomach
I don’t see dry mouth or dry throat in my notes for cardinal Kidney symptoms, which made me think Lung was the correct answer, except for the scanty urination points towards Kidney. I’m hoping for just some clarification on this.
>>Hmm. That’s strange. Dryness of the mouth and throat are very much cardinal symptoms. Please add those to your list.
Question 139: Which of the following is incorrect in the cosmological cycle?
– Water to Earth to Wood
– Metal to Earth to Water
– Fire to Earth to Metal
– Wood to Earth to Metal (correct answer)
I didn’t quite understand this question so hoping for an explanation on the correct answer please 🙂
>>Strap in for a text-based answer to a visual problem! The Cosmological Cycle is the one where Earth is in the middle, Fire is at the top, Water is at the bottom, Wood is to the left, and Metal is to the right. There STILL IS a generating cycle within this cycle; however, the key here is that before Wood goes to Fire, it goes to the Earth first. This is also true of any of the elements. For example: Wood (to Earth) to Fire (to Earth) to Metal (to Earth) to Water (and so on). So looking at the question again, the first three options show a proper generating cycle while the last one does not. If you need more clarification let me know but draw it out and try it.
Question 141: Which of the following elements would have the body type with small shoulders and upper back, a relatively flat abdomen, and a relatively small head with a square-shaped face?
– Metal element (correct answer)
– Earth
– Water
– Wood
On page 72 of our guidebook it says a metal body type is square and broad shoulders, strong body type, and a triangle shaped face, so just wondering if both are correct mMtal body types or if one of them is incorrect?
>>You’ll get these kinds of ‘not so clear’ questions on the exam so we try to mimic them. The description of the person in the question is quite minimal, with the only really disguishing remark being that their face is square-shaped — which should tip you off to Metal.
Question 151: When doing the paediatric digital exam, a green-blue colour indicates which of the following?
– food accumulation (correct answer)
– heat pattern
– cold pattern
– phlegm accumulation
Page 72 of our guidebook says that bluish veins indicate cold, so just wondering which is the correct answer here 🙂
>>You are correct. In general, red is Heat, blue is Cold, and Green-Blue is Food Accumulation.
Question 164: When doing the paediatric digital exam, fresh red venules indicate which of the following?
– cold pattern
– wind-cold
– heat pattern
– food accumulation
It said the correct answer was wind-cold, but our guidebooks say red = heat.
>>”Fresh-red” is indicative of a Wind-Cold. I realize that this can sound conflicting. There are a few different sources for this material, so, comparatively, “fresh-red” is more for Wind-Cold and “purple-red” is more for Heat.