Optical Properties of Human Skin around Biological Active Points

The physical parameter for the so-called Biologically Active Points most documented in the literature is the electrical impedance. These points seem to have higher electrical conductance than their surrounding points. The stimulation of these points is made not only mechanically and electrically but also optically (laser acupuncture) and thermically (moxibustion). We evaluated by optoacoustic technique and by photothermal radiometry, some skin points along the PC acupuncture meridian in the forearm region. We found a slight relative increment in absorption in some regions around the meridian region but without a definite association with an acupoint. Moreover, the same case can be applied to a non-meridian line. In radiometric signals we did not find differences with respect to control points in a two layer model. Based in these results we can not conclude that such points are optically or thermally special.