Dubi (ST35): The Outer Knee Eye for a Stiff, Aching Knee

Where Dubi Sits

This point is the outer of the two hollows directly below the kneecap, beside the thick tendon that runs to the shin, best found with the knee bent at a right angle, and it is used for a stiff, aching knee. It belongs to the line that Vietnamese and Chinese texts call the Stomach channel. In the traditional map it starts below the eye, runs down the face and the front of the neck, over the chest and belly, and then down the front of the thigh and shin to the second toe. There are forty-five stops along it, and this is the thirty-fifth. It is the point where the line crosses the knee.

Sit with your knee bent at a right angle and look at the front of it. At the bottom of the kneecap a thick, firm tendon runs straight down to a bump at the top of the shin bone. On either side of that tendon there is a soft dimple. In Vietnamese these are called the eyes of the knee. This point is the outer eye, the dimple on the little-toe side. The old texts place it at the junction of the kneecap and the top of the shin bone, in the hollow outside the tendon.

Under the skin of the hollow there is a soft pad of fat that sits in front of the knee joint and cushions it. Behind that pad lies the joint itself, where the thigh bone meets the shin bone. The firm cord you feel beside the hollow is the kneecap tendon. It carries the pull of the big front thigh muscle down to the shin every time you straighten the leg.

The knee is served by several nerves. Fine branches from the femoral nerve, from the nerve that runs along the outer side of the leg, and from the nerve that runs down the inner leg all send twigs to the front of the joint. Most draw from roots in the lower back, the third and fourth lumbar roots. That rich supply is one reason the front of the knee can feel so sharp and clear under a fingertip.

Why This Spot

Few places give such direct access to the knee joint. Elsewhere around the knee there is bone, thick tendon or muscle in the way. Here there is only skin and a soft pad between your fingertip and the front of the joint. The two hollows are also easy to see and easy to feel. With the knee bent, they open up like two small eyes on either side of the tendon. You do not need to measure anything.

The knee is also where many of the people who read these pages feel their pain. Stairs, getting out of a low chair, kneeling, or the first steps after sitting are the times it shows itself. This hollow is the spot that often feels sore at those moments, and it is easy to reach from a chair.

In this tradition the name is an old picture. It means the calf's nose. With the knee bent, the kneecap and the two hollows below it were said to look like the face of a young ox, the hollows being its nostrils. This point, the outer nostril, belongs to the Stomach line, which in the tradition supplies the muscles of the front of the leg. The inner hollow is counted as a separate extra point. Together the pair have long been used for the knee itself: stiffness, aching, and joints that complain in cold, damp weather.

What the Old Texts Say About Dubi

This point is one of the oldest knee points in the tradition, and its use has hardly changed. Throughout the teaching literature it is tied to one complaint above all: a knee that aches and will not bend or straighten freely. Teachers added that the ache often worsens in cold, damp weather. The way of finding it has stayed the same too. The person sits with the knee bent, and the point is taken in the hollow below the kneecap, outside the tendon.

The Vietnamese handbook used in this method, Ngô Trung Triều's Points and Channels of the Human Body (Huyệt vị kinh lạc cơ thể người), lists a single use for it: knee joint pain. Its quick-finding method asks you to sit upright with the knee bent at a right angle. On the outer side below the kneecap there is a hollow beside the tendon, and that is the point.

The World Health Organization's location guide of 2008 describes the same place: on the front of the knee, in the hollow outside the kneecap tendon. Several other points on the shin are measured downward from it, which shows how firmly this hollow is settled as a landmark. That long agreement proves nothing about how pressing it works. It does show that, across countries and centuries, people with sore knees kept reaching for the same small dimple.

Points That Work With Dubi

The closest partner is the inner eye of the knee, the matching dimple on the other side of the same tendon, toward the big toe. The two are so often used together that many teachers count them as a pair. You can press both at once: thumb in one hollow, first finger in the other, the tendon between them. It is commonly used for an aching knee, especially on the inner side.

The second lies below the knee on the same line. From this hollow, lay four fingers down the shin and move one finger-width out from the front edge of the shin bone. In this tradition it is one of the best-known points for tired, aching legs, and it is often used with the knee eyes.

The third sits on the outer side below the knee. Feel for the small, round head of the thinner lower-leg bone, a little below and outside this hollow. Slide your fingertip forward and down into the hollow in front of it. In this tradition it is a key point for muscles and tendons, used for a stiff knee and leg.

How to Find and Press Dubi

Getting Into Position

Sit on a firm chair with your back supported, feet flat on the floor, and the knee bent at about a right angle. This opens the hollows and makes the tendon stand out. Let the thigh rest on the seat and the leg relax completely. If the leg is tense, the tendon pulls tight and the hollow is harder to feel.

How to Find It

Run your fingertip down the front of the kneecap to its lower edge. Below it you will feel the thick, firm tendon heading down to a bump on the shin. Now slide off the tendon toward the outer side, the little-toe side. Your fingertip drops into a soft dimple, bordered by the kneecap above, the tendon on one side and the top of the shin bone below. That dimple is your area.

Search inside it. Use a rounded-tip pressing tool, or the tip of your thumb with the nail cut short. Probe around the hollow in small steps, a few millimetres at a time, pressing in and slightly toward the centre of the knee. Most of the hollow will feel soft and dull. One spot will sting: a sharp, pinpoint tenderness. That is the point. It may sit close to the edge of the kneecap or closer to the tendon. If the hollow feels puffy, warm or full of fluid, do not press it; see the safety notes below.

How to Press It

Stay on the spot that stings and rub it in small circles, no wider than a grain of rice. Let the skin move with the tool. Aim inward and slightly up, toward the middle of the knee behind the kneecap, not straight back into the bone.

If you want to work both eyes of the knee at once, put the tip of your thumb in this hollow and the tip of your first finger in the inner hollow, with the tendon between them. Squeeze gently and make small circles together. That grip is stronger than it feels, so use less force than with a single tip. Never use anything sharp or pointed in these soft hollows.

How Much Pressure

On this point, sharp under the tool is right. The sting should be clear but bearable, and it should fade within a few seconds of lifting off. If you are holding your breath or gripping the chair, ease off. Stop if the pain stays after you lift off, if it spreads through the knee, or if the knee turns swollen, hot or red. Stop too for any electric or numb sensation. A knee that feels more swollen or stiffer the next day means lighter pressure next time, or a few days off.

How Long

One to three minutes per point, on each knee. In the first few sessions stay near one minute a knee. As the days go on and the spot becomes less touchy, build up toward two or three minutes. Work both knees, even if only one complains. One or two sessions a day is plenty.

When to Do It

A morning session suits a knee that is stiff on getting up. Rub the hollow, then bend and straighten the knee slowly a few times while you sit. A session before a walk, or before tackling the stairs, is another good time. An afternoon session suits a knee that aches after a busy day. A short session before bed is fine too. Do not press in the middle of the night. If knee pain wakes you, change position, put a pillow under or between the knees, and leave the point until the morning. Working a sharp spot while half-awake is easy to overdo, and it tends to leave you more alert, not less.

What This Won't Do

It will not rebuild a worn knee. Knee pain in later life usually comes from wear in the joint, a torn cartilage pad, a strained ligament, or weak thigh muscles that no longer steady the kneecap. Pressing a hollow below the kneecap cannot change the joint. What it can do is ease a sore spot for a while and make it easier to start moving. Regular walking, standing up often, keeping a healthy weight, and the strengthening exercises a physiotherapist gives you will do more for the knee over time. This point sits alongside them as a comfort measure.

It will not replace a diagnosis. A knee that is suddenly hot, red and swollen, especially with fever, needs a doctor the same day. A knee that gives way, locks, or cannot take your weight after a twist or a fall needs to be checked. A calf that is swollen, hot and painful needs urgent attention, because it can signal a blood clot. Knee pain that keeps you from walking, gets worse week after week, or comes with weight loss you cannot explain should be seen by a doctor, not managed alone.

Safety First

Skip this point on a knee that is hot and swollen, after recent knee surgery, or while a knee replacement scar is still settling; ask your surgeon or physiotherapist before you start. Do not work over skin that is broken, burned, infected, badly bruised or rashy. If you have varicose veins or have ever had a blood clot in the leg, ask a doctor first, and never press on a bulging vein. If you take blood thinners, bruise easily, have a bleeding disorder, advanced diabetes or reduced feeling in your legs, use lighter pressure and shorter sessions, and talk to your doctor first.

Stop at once if the knee goes numb, if the pain stays after you lift off, or if the knee turns swollen, hot or red. For the full list of cautions and the situations where self-applied pressure is not appropriate, read the full safety guide before you begin.

Questions People Ask

Where is the Dubi (ST35) pressure point? Dubi (ST35) is the hollow below the kneecap on its outer side, beside the thick tendon that runs from the kneecap to the shin. Sit with the knee bent and you will see two small dimples either side of that tendon. The outer one, toward the little-toe side, is the area to search.

What is the difference between the two knee eyes? There are two hollows below the kneecap, one either side of the tendon. The outer one is this point. The inner one, toward the big-toe side, is a separate extra point. They are often pressed together, one with the thumb and one with the first finger.

How long should I press Dubi? One to three minutes on each knee. Stay near one minute in the first sessions, then lengthen a little as the days go on. One or two sessions a day is enough. Work both knees, even if only one complains.

Can I press Dubi (ST35) if I have a knee replacement? Not while the scar is still settling, and not without asking your surgeon or physiotherapist first. Once they are happy, use only light pressure and stop if the knee becomes warm, swollen or more painful afterward.

Should the knee be bent or straight? Bent, at about a right angle. With the knee bent the hollows open up and the tendon stands out, so the spot is easy to find. With the leg straight the hollows flatten and the soft pad behind the tendon fills them.

What is Dubi (ST35) used for, and what does the name mean? In Vietnamese traditional medicine it is commonly used for a stiff, aching knee, especially one that complains on stairs, after sitting or in cold, damp weather. The name means "the Calf's Nose"; with the knee bent, the two hollows below the kneecap were likened to the nostrils of a young ox. In Vietnamese the point is called Độc Tỵ. A sharp sting that fades when you lift off tells you that you are on it.

Other Points in This Library

Each of these sits within reach of the same hand. They are often worked in the same sitting.

This page shares general information about a traditional practice. It is not medical advice and does not replace what your doctor has given you. If you are pregnant, managing a health condition, or unsure whether this applies to you, check with your doctor first.

The whole inner edge of the foot, laid out on one page with photographs, is in The Foot Map — the free book. For every point in this library, see the full pressure point index.

(Point shown: ST35 · Dubi · The Calf's Nose · Độc Tỵ.)