Fuliu (复溜 KI7): The Kidney Point That Controls Sweat

The Point That Commands Sweat

Fuliu (复溜), the seventh point on the Kidney (Zú Shàoyīn) meridian, has one of the most specific reputations in acupuncture: it controls sweating. The classical formulation, repeated in nearly every major acupuncture text, is 无汗能发，有汗能止 — “when there is no sweat it can release it; when there is sweat it can stop it.” That single phrase captures why Fuliu is one of the most clinically relied-upon Kidney points.

The name itself is revealing. Fu (复) means “again” or “return”; liu (溜) means “to flow” or “slip.” The point “returns the flow” — restoring the movement of fluids (whether sweat, urine, or Kidney water) that has gone out of balance. As a Jing-River (经金) point and the metal point of the Kidney meridian, Fuliu also has a tonifying quality, which is why it nourishes Kidney Yin and Yang alike rather than simply moving things.

Location

Detail	Description
Meridian	Kidney (足少阴肾经)
Point code	KI7
Location	On the medial leg, ~2 cun above the tip of the medial malleolus, anterior to the Achilles tendon, posterior to the medial edge of the tibia
Five-Shu category	Jing-River point; Metal point of the Kidney meridian
Needling	Perpendicular, 0.5–1 cun; tonifying technique is commonly used

It sits directly above Taixi (KI3), the source point of the Kidney meridian and one of the most important Kidney-tonifying points in the body. The KI3–KI7 pair is the classic combination for nourishing Kidney Yin.

What It Treats

Sweat Disorders (汗证)

This is Fuliu’s defining application, and the one that makes it distinctive:

• Night sweats (盗汗): The most common use. Night sweats in TCM usually reflect Yin deficiency with deficiency heat — the body’s cooling reserves are low, and heat escapes through the pores at night. Fuliu, combined with points like Houxi (SI3) or Yinxi, is a standard prescription.
• Spontaneous daytime sweating (自汗): Sweating without exertion, usually a Qi/Yang deficiency sign. Fuliu stops it.
• Profuse sweating from deficiency: After illness, childbirth, or exhaustion, where the pores cannot close properly.
• Sweating that will not come: In an exterior cold pattern with chills but no sweat, Fuliu (with Hegu LI4) helps open the pores and induce the sweat that should release the pathogen.

The same point working in opposite directions seems paradoxical, but the TCM logic is that Fuliu restores the proper opening-and-closing function of the pores, which the Lungs and Kidneys jointly govern. Once that function is corrected, sweat returns to normal — whether that means more or less of it.

Edema and Fluid Retention

As a “return the flow” point on the Kidney meridian (the Kidney governs water metabolism in TCM), Fuliu promotes urination and drains dampness:

• Edema of the lower limbs
• Puffy legs and ankles
• Fluid retention from Kidney deficiency

It is often paired with Sanyinjiao (SP6), Yinlingquan (SP9), and Taixi (KI3).

Kidney Deficiency Patterns

Because it tonifies, Fuliu nourishes both Kidney Yin and Kidney Yang, supporting:

• Chronic lower back pain and knee weakness
• Tinnitus and hearing loss (Kidney opens into the ears)
• Fatigue, dizziness, and poor memory from Kidney depletion
• Impotence, frequent urination, and Kidney-Yang weakness (with moxibustion)

Digestive Disorders

Less obvious but classically documented, Fuliu treats chronic diarrhea and abdominal distention — through the Kidney’s role in warming the Spleen (the “fire of the gate of life,” 命门之火, must warm digestion). For early-morning diarrhea (五更泄), Fuliu is sometimes combined with Spleen points.

How to Use It at Home (Acupressure)

Fuliu is well-suited to self-acupressure:

1. Find the point: Sit and cross one ankle over the opposite knee. Find the inner ankle bone (medial malleolus). Move two thumb-widths upward along the inner leg, in the soft groove between the shin bone (tibia) and the Achilles tendon.
2. Press: Use the thumb to press firmly for 2–3 minutes on each leg. A dull, aching sensation is the correct response.
3. Best uses: Night sweats and menopausal heat, lower-leg puffiness, lower back and knee tiredness at the end of the day.
4. Pairs well with: Sanyinjiao (SP6, inner lower leg) for Yin nourishment and edema; Taixi (KI3, the depression below the inner ankle) for general Kidney tonification.

For night sweats and Kidney-deficiency patterns, regular acupressure over several weeks is more useful than a single session.

Classical Notes

Fuliu’s sweat-regulating reputation is documented as early as the Zhen Jiu Jia Yi Jing (《针灸甲乙经》, 282 CE) and is emphasized throughout the later canon. The Zhen Jiu Da Cheng (《针灸大成》, 1601) lists its indications as “spontaneous sweating, night sweating, no sweating, edema, abdominal distention, diarrhea, lumbar pain, and inability to stand for long.” The fact that “sweating” in all three forms — too much, at night, and too little — appears in the same entry is the historical source of the famous dual-action description.

A Point Worth Knowing

Sweat is one of those things most people never think about until it goes wrong — until they wake soaked at 3 a.m., or sweat through their clothes without exertion, or find their legs swollen at the end of the day. Fuliu is the Kidney point that addresses exactly these problems, and it does so by restoring the body’s own regulation of fluids rather than forcing a result. Combined with its general Kidney-tonifying role, it is one of the most practically useful points on the lower leg.

Related Reading

• Taixi: The Kidney Source Point
• Sanyinjiao: The Three Yin Crossing
• Yinlingquan for Dampness
• TCM Menopause Guide