Another distinction of Master Tung’s Acupuncture are the Master Tung Reaction Areas. Unlike traditional acupuncture points, Master Tung's points have no channel pathways. Rather, Master Tung’s points are organized into reaction areas/zones/channels, or what Master Tung referred to as "nerves." Each reaction area reflects both the TCM and Western functions of the organs. For example, if the reaction area of a point is KI, this indicates that the point can treat nephritis (the actual kidney organ dysfunction), as well as diarrhea caused by Kidney deficiency (TCM diagnosis).
Note: While it can be confusing that the word "channel" is used interchangeably with reaction areas/zones/nerves in Master Tung's Acupuncture, it is important to remember that "channel" in this system refers to the unique method of organizing points into groups, and not the traditional acupuncture channel pathways. Therefore, if a Tung acupuncture book states that the reaction area of a point is the HT channel, this means that the point is located in the area that treats HT disorders.
Within each Master Tung Reaction Area, there are clusters of points with similar effects. These similarly functioning points are further categorized according to their relative strengths. Points rated with + + + + + have the quickest and strongest effects on the organs in the reaction area; whereas points rated with + are the weakest points in the reaction area. In general, points with medium strength (+ + + / + + + +) are sufficient for patients who seek acupuncture treatments.
Using the Lung area as an example, the 5 strength groupings, from strongest to weakest are as follows:
| Abbreviation | Nerves / Areas / Channels |
|---|---|
| LU+++++ | Primary Lung Nerve (肺總神經 | fèi zǒng shén jīng) |
| LU++++ | Lung Nerve (肺神經 | fèi shén jīng) |
| LU+++ | Lung Branch Nerve (肺分枝（枝，支）神經 | fèi fēn zhī (zhī, zhī) shén jīng) |
| LU++ | Lung Assistant Nerve (肺副神經 | fèi fù shén jīng) |
| LU+ | Lung Thin/Cross Nerve (肺細，交叉....等等神經 | fèi xì, jiāo chā...etc. shén jīng) |
To determine which points in a reaction area to needle for a condition, one can go about it in 2 ways. 1) Palpate and needle the most reactive or ah shi points in the appropriate reaction area. 2) Needle the strongest point among those in the reaction area along with two other ah shi points. Master Tung usually used 2-3 synergistic points, with no more than 6 needles in total per treatment.