Editor’s Note: This post references AcuGraph 5, which has been succeeded by AcuGraph CS. The clinical concepts discussed remain applicable to current practice.
Let’s walk through the process of performing an Exam.
We’ll start by selecting a patient.
Then click on New Exam.
By default, AcuGraph measures the Source points. As you perform the exam you will see a picture of the point your measuring.
On the right side of the screen, two visual indicators show additional information about the measurement.
- For each measurement you’ll see that countdown timer so you can see how much longer you have on that point before the software captures the reading.
- And you’ll also see a line graph that shows the stability of the reading. We are hoping to see measurements quickly climb and plateau.
(Note: Sometimes when you complete the exam, the software will automatically ask you to remeasure some points that it has detected may have had improper measurement location on the first measurement. You can adjust this setting or remove the prompt entirely in the software Settings.)
As you finish the exam, the software automatically displays the results as the graph.
The tabs across the top of the exam screen show the different types of exams that are available in AcuGraph. The second tab is Jing-Well. This exam looks and preforms very similar to the source exam, but it prompts to measure the Jing-Well points as it walks you through point by point.
The Ryodoraku exam is likewise very similar, measuring the original Ryodoraku points.
The Screening exam is designed for when you’re going out and doing a public screening event or health fair. At these events you don’t want to have people take their shoes and socks as measure feet can be uncomfortable and time-consuming. This exam only measures the hands, so it’s really fast and easy, non-invasive, and gives potential patients an introduction to the idea of meridians and how computers are used in modern acupuncture. This really gives you an opportunity to set an appointment with potential patients to come into your office for a complete graph.
This brings us to the tab we skipped earlier, the Single Point exam. This is designed for measuring a single point repeatedly, to track real time reactions of the point to an intervention or a stimulus you are introducing to the patient.
To do this, choose the point you will be testing and begin measurement. Each completed measurement will be plotted on the graph. As you remeasure the point over and over, you can see a pattern that it creates, and the surprising changes that can be detected when an intervention is introduced.
So there you have it, AcuGraph 5 has a number of exam options which can be used it several different ways to improve results in practice.
