Kiiko Matsumoto, the founder of Kiiko Matsumoto Style (KMS) Acupuncture, is internationally acclaimed as a living master, an inspirational teacher and a dynamic highly successful pioneer who is constantly developing the practice of acupuncture across the world. Born in Japan, Kiiko spent her first few decades studying with the pre-eminent Japanese masters of the twentieth century, most notably her mentor Master Nagano. Dedicated to furthering the clinical application of acupuncture treatment, Kiiko continues to spend much time studying the ancient Chinese classical texts as well as studying current research in western scientific medicine. Her ability to integrate knowledge from both paradigms to achieve powerful and effective clinical strategies is what she is most revered for. Kiiko has published five fundamental texts on acupuncture in English and many articles. She travels around the world teaching her style of acupuncture as well as running a very busy practice in Boston, USA.
Kiiko is constantly developing methods designed to achieve maximum results when treating a patient. Her ability to overlay current patho-physiological thinking on top of ancient Chinese energetic understandings of how the body works together as a unified whole, is unique. This allows us to look at patients in a totally new way. Combining the micro and the macro gives us a fuller picture of what is going on with the patient. This enables more focused treatment which can be adjusted to meet the needs of each individual. A living system of acupuncture must, by definition, recognise the changing needs of the time in which it is practiced. Every session with every patient starts with diagnostic palpation,. Over the years, therefore, Kiiko has palpated literally tens of thousands of patients. This enables her to see how patterns of illness in society change. From the excess indulgences of the 1990s, to adrenal stress after 9/11 through to the systemic ravages of Covid-19, Kiiko is able to identify patterns of illness and, more importantly, to create effective treatment strategies to deal with them.
Even understandings of evolution, of how we evolved as humans, are incorporated in clinic. To this day, for example, all babies in utero undergo a ‘fish stage’. Points on the side of the body where our gills would have been often prove useful for balance issues. Another case in point is how Kiiko highlights the importance of how the shoulder and pelvic girdles should work in harmony as would be seen when we walked all on fours. This is often relevant for one-sided back pain, hip or knee problems.
Particular attention is given to a person’s medical history. Any significant health events, even at birth or in utero, are noted, as these, if unhealed, may continue to disturb the body, distracting and diverting resources away from dealing with the ailments a patient presents with. An unhealed appendix or c-section scar, for example, may distract the body from resolving a painful shoulder or pain in the lower back. In these cases, the earlier incidents often need to be addressed first so that the shoulder and back can fully heal. We could compare this to a computer which, if bogged down with viruses, is unable to function at its best, often getting stuck and unable to easily perform the ordinary day-to-day tasks it needs to do. If we resolve the underlying issues, everything else will function better, smoother and more dynamically.
It is essential, therefore, to get to the root of any disorder and to help the body to work as best as it can, and this is one of the greatest strengths of KMS acupuncture. This is achieved primarily through palpation – the ability to gain information through touch. This method evolved to an extraordinary level of sophistication in Japan since, as early as the Edo Period (1602-1868), Japanese acupuncture was practiced largely by the blind. Master Nagano, a blind practitioner, was Kiiko’s greatest mentor. Inspired by his deep knowledge of both Chinese classical texts and Western medicine and his ability to translate this knowledge in a coherent way in his clinical work, Kiiko developed her own sophisticated system of diagnosis based on palpable changes in the abdomen, neck and spine. Once learned, this system of palpation becomes a simple method for obtaining instant feedback as to the patient’s condition of health. Specific active reflexes (or sore ‘ouchi’ areas) help identify the underlying system at the root of the disorder. Treatment points are then tested against these reflexes for confirmation that the treatment strategy is effective. Focusing on the underlying causes of a disorder not only results in relief from symptoms but it often leads to effective, long-lasting clinical results leaving the patient in better health and with a better understanding of why symptoms occurred and what they can do to manage their own health better in future.
Kiiko is well known for achieving incredible results whilst using the smallest gauge needles that are virtually pain-free. Kiiko’s boundless enthusiasm and her thirst for knowledge keep her working tirelessly in the pursuit of clinical mastery, following in the footsteps of her greatest teacher, Master Nagano. We all owe a huge debt and thanks to these mighty figures of the acupuncture world, for disseminating their learning and enabling us to provide high-quality, effective clinical treatments to our patients at Stroud Acupuncture
