Classification of Muscles into Meridian Sinew: A Literature Review

근육의 경근 배속에 대한 국내 연구 고찰

Objectives Although many studies explored the topic of meridian sinew in various perspectives and the term "meridian sinew" is widely used, the theory of meridian sinew is not applied for precise diagnosis and in-depth treatment in clinical practice. The aim of the study is to provide basic data classifying muscles into meridian sinew for future studies that investigate meridian sinew based on an anatomical basis. Methods Studies were identified with searches of six major Korean databases: OASIS, KoreaMed, KMBASE, KISS, NDSL and KoreanTK. Published primary studies classifying muscles into meridian sinew were included. Results A total of 20 studies met the inclusion criteria and were included in the analysis. Twelve studies conducted the classification of muscles into meridian sinew based on meridian/ acupoints distribution and six based on meridian sinew distribution, and two based on both. Muscles with fidelity level of 50 or more were 54 (85.7%) and muscles with 100 fidelity level were 7 (11.3%): occipitalis, adductor digiti minimi, frontalis, biceps femoris, rectus femoris, vatus lateralis and extensor digitorum longus. Conclusions Classification results of muscles into meridian sinew varied according to the classification criteria and interpretation of meridian sinew and acupoints distribution. To develop muscle sinew as a more useful theory in diagnosis and treatment, efforts should be made to reduce the gap between study results and build consensus on the anatomical entity of meridian sinew.