GB20 (Fengchi, “Wind Pool”) is the Meeting point of the Gallbladder and Yang Wei Mai point of the Gallbladder Channel Meridian. It is located at the back of the neck, below the occiput, in the depression between the upper origins of the sternocleidomastoid and trapezius muscles, level with GV16 (Fengfu). It expels exterior and interior wind, clears the head and eyes, benefits the ears, soothes the sinews, and activates the channel.
At the back of the neck, below the occiput, in the depression between the upper origins of the sternocleidomastoid and trapezius muscles, level with GV16 (Fengfu).
With the patient's head slightly flexed, direct the needle inferiorly and medially towards the tip of the nose, 0.5 to 1.0 cun. Oblique insertion towards the contralateral eye is also used. Deep or superior insertion towards the medulla oblongata is strictly forbidden.
Expels exterior and interior wind, clears the head and eyes, benefits the ears, soothes the sinews, and activates the channel.
Headache,unilateral and vertex headache, cold damage, warm disease, chills and fever, lack of sweating, wind-stroke, hemiplegia, qi obstruction with phlegm rising causing inability to speak, coma/critical condition, dizziness, unclear vision, tearing, redness and pain of the inner canthus, nasal congestion and nosebleed, blocked ears, sensation of the neck being pulled out, neck pain with inability to turn the head, pain in the lower back and back, stooped back pulling on neck sinews with weakness and lack of control, goiter qi, (malaria), epilepsy, falling down stiff, unresolved vexation after taking Gui Zhi Tang, horse yellow jaundice, all diseases of the head.
Fengchi is a primary point for dispelling both external and internal wind, making it indispensable for conditions ranging from the common cold and influenza to severe neurological disorders like stroke and epilepsy. Its location at the junction of the head and neck allows it to treat headaches, dizziness, neck stiffness, and eye disorders. As a key point on the Shaoyang channel, it is frequently used for alternating chills and fever, malaria, and conditions involving the ears.
Classical text; the translation was prepared with AI and is not clinical advice.
《諸病源候論》 Zhūbìng Yuánhòu Lùn — Treatise on the Origins and Symptoms of Diseases, Chao Yuanfang, 610 · 一、养小儿候 · Source: Wikisource ↗
风池在颈项筋两辕之边，有病乃治之。 疾微，慎不欲妄针灸According to this text, GB20 lies at the sides of the neck beside the two great sinews and should be treated only when there is illness; when the illness is slight, one should take care not to needle or moxa rashly.
《奇經八脈考》 Qíjīng Bāmài Kǎo — Exposition of the Eight Extraordinary Vessels, Li Shizhen, 1578 · 陽蹻脈 · Source: Wikisource ↗
會手足少陽於風池在耳後發際陷中According to this text, the vessel meets the hand and foot Shaoyang at GB20, which lies in the depression at the hairline behind the ear.
《醫學綱目·刺灸》 Yīxué Gāngmù · Cìjiǔ — Outline of Medicine: Needling and Moxibustion, Lou Ying, 1565 · 卷之八·陰陽臟腑部 · 穴法下 · Source: jicheng.tw ↗
風池二穴，在腦空後髮際陷中，足少陽陽維之會。 針入七分，留七呼，可灸七壯According to this text, GB20 lies in the depression at the hairline behind Naokong and is a meeting point of the foot Shaoyang and Yangwei. Needling is 7 fen, retained for 7 breaths, with up to 7 moxa cones.
《傷寒論》 Shānghán Lùn — Treatise on Cold Damage, c. 200 CE · bian-tai-yang-bing-mai-zheng · Source: Wikisource ↗
太陽病，初服桂枝湯，反煩不解者，先刺風池、風府，卻與桂枝湯則愈The text records that in Taiyang disease, if irritability does not resolve after the first dose of Guizhi decoction, one should first needle GB20 and Fengfu and then give Guizhi decoction again, after which recovery is said to follow.
GB20 is one of 44 points on the Gallbladder Channel Meridian. Nearby points:
GB20 (Fengchi) is located at the back of the neck, below the occiput, in the depression between the upper origins of the sternocleidomastoid and trapezius muscles, level with GV16 (Fengfu).
GB20 expels exterior and interior wind, clears the head and eyes, benefits the ears, soothes the sinews, and activates the channel. Common clinical indications include headache,unilateral and vertex headache, cold damage, warm disease, chills and fever, lack of sweating, wind-stroke, hemiplegia, qi obstruction with phlegm rising causing inability to speak, coma/critical condition, dizziness, unclear vision, tearing, redness and pain of the inner canthus, nasal congestion and nosebleed, blocked ears, sensation of the neck being pulled out, neck pain with inability to turn the head, pain in the lower back and back, stooped back pulling on neck sinews with weakness and lack of control, goiter qi, (malaria), epilepsy, falling down stiff, unresolved vexation after taking Gui Zhi Tang, horse yellow jaundice, all diseases of the head.
With the patient's head slightly flexed, direct the needle inferiorly and medially towards the tip of the nose, 0.5 to 1.0 cun. Oblique insertion towards the contralateral eye is also used. Deep or superior insertion towards the medulla oblongata is strictly forbidden. Caution: Close to the brainstem/spinal cord — never needle deeply or angle superomedially; direct the needle as standard (e.g. toward the opposite eye for GB20). Deep insertion can be fatal. The Jia Yi Jing warns against moxibustion on Tianyou without first needling another unspecified point, stating it can cause facial swelling and eye closure, but that needling Fengchi afterward can resolve this. This implies a close functional relationship and a need for caution in the region.
GB20 is a point on the Gallbladder Channel Meridian (Zú Shàoyáng Dǎnjīng).