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. 2013 Mar 20;2013:581203. doi: 10.1155/2013/581203

Table 2.

Infections associated with acupuncture (48 cases).

First author/year
(references)
Country Cases age/sex Disease treated Punctured site Diagnosis Practitioner Followup time
Origuchi 2000 [9] Japan 67/M Not stated Not stated Infectious aortic aneurysm Not specified Recovered (≥8 d)
Ishibe 2001 [10] Japan 13/M LBP # Not stated Septic arthritis Acupuncturist Recovered (1 wk)
Woo 2001 [11] HK 79/F Knee OA GB38* (leg) Mycobacterium chelonae Not specified Recovered (3 wk)
Nambiar 2001 [12] UK 42/F LBP # Not stated Endocarditis Not specified Recovered (?)
Shah 2002 [13] UK 37/M Tendonitis BL57* (leg) Streptococcus Not specified Recovered (?)
Leavy 2002 [14] USA 33/M Hip pain Low limb Staphylococcus aureus Not specified Recovered (6 wk)
Laing 2002 [15] Ireland 45/F Postoperative recovery Around tibia Staphylococcus aureus strain sensitive to methicillin (in knee joint) Practitioner Recovered (6 wk)
Uchino 2002 [16] Japan 47/F Weight loss Earlobes Infected left atrial myxoma (Gram-positive) Not specified Recovered (after surgery)
Woo 2003 [17] HK 73/M LBP Back Staphylococcus Not specified Recovered (5 wk)
Ara 2003 [18] Spain 58/F Obesity Abdomen Mycobacterium  chelonae Not specified Recovered (3 mo)
Cho 2003 [19] Korea 56/M Right flank discomfort Not stated Klebsiella pneumoniae Not specified Recovered (?)
Kettaneh 2003 [20] France 70/F Not stated Face Facial erysipelas Physiotherapist Recovered (4 wk)
Wiwanitkit 2003 [6] Thailand 60/F muscle pain Not stated HIV Non-MD Not stated
Ha 2003 [21] Korea 68/F LBP Back Staphylococcus Not specified Recovered (4 mo)
Lin 2003 [22] Australia 44/F Not stated Thigh Tissue abscess and osteomyelitis Not specified Recovered (?)
Daivajna 2004 [23] UK 48/F LBP Low back Septic arthritis Not specified Recovered (3 wk)
Studd 2004 [24] Australia 64/F Epigastric pain Abdomen (embedded needles) Intra-abdominal abscess Not specified Recovered (3 wk)
Kim 2004 [25] Canada 50/M LBP Lower back Discitis from staphylococcus Acupuncturist Recovered (?)
Saw 2004 [26] Malaysia 55/F Knee OA Knee Necrotizing fasciitis Not specified Recovered (?)
Chen 2004 [27] Taiwan 44/M Nuchal and subscapular pain Cervical paraspinal and medial scapular region Staphylococcus aureus Not specified Recovered (5 mo)
Vucicevic 2005 [28] Croatia 53/F Shoulder stiffness Shoulder and arm Staphylococcus pleural empyema Not specified Recovered (6 wk)
Bang 2005 [29] Korea 64/M LBP Lumbar paraspinal muscles Escherichia coli Not specified Paraplegic
Seeley 2006 [30] USA 31/M Hip pain Bip, thigh Staphylococcus bacteraemia TCM doctor Recovered (4 wk)
Simmons 2006 [8] Scotland 69/M Knee pain SP10* (knee) Cellulitis, septicemia, and pneumonia Not stated Death due to renal failure
Tien 2008 [31] Taiwan 78/M Knee RA Knee Listeria monocytogenes Septic arthritis Acupuncturist Recovered (3 wk)
Morgan 2008 [32] USA 16/F Weight loss Auricular Pseudomonas aeruginosa Acupuncture parlor Recovered (21 d)
Lee 2008 [33] Korea 79/M LBP Back Escherichia coli and MRSA Not specified Recovered (76 d)
Hwang 2008 [34] Korea 25/F LBP Back Pneumoretroperitoneum OMD Recovered (1 wk)
Jeong 2009 [35] Korea 24/F Weight loss Both arms Factitial panniculitis Not specified Recovered (?)
22/F Weight loss Abdomen Factitial panniculitis Not specified Recovered (?)
Hwang 2008 [36] Korea 25/F LBP Not stated Pneumoretroperitoneum Licensed OMD Recovered (7 d)
Wu 2009 [37] Taiwan 12/M Neurologic sequelae of encephalitis Head Pott's puffy tumor from pseudomonas Not specified Recovered (8 wk)
Woo 2009 [38] HK 43/F Knee pain Knee MRSA Not specified Recovered (3 mo)
Ogasawara 2009 [39] Japan 50/F LBP Lower back Septic arthritis
(MRSA)
Not specified Recovered (70 d)
Guevara-Patiño 2010 [40] Venezuela 23/F Not stated Not stated NTM Not specified Recovered (6 mo)
Nakajima 2010 [41] Japan 60/F Knee pain Needles embedded at knee Enterococcus faecalis knee infection Not specified Recovered (1 y)
Winter 2010 [42] USA 21/F Obesity Auricular
Auricular cellulitis Acupuncturist Recovered (2 d)
30/M Obesity Auricular Auricular cellulitis Acupuncturist Recovered (1 wk)
Kim 2010 [43] Korea 53/F LBP Lower back Psoas abscess Not specified Recovered (2 wk)
Cho 2010 [44] Korea 59/F Not stated Abdomen, thigh Mycobacterium skin infection Not specified Recovered (3 mo)
77/M
Not stated
Back and abdomen
Cutaneous tuberculosis infection Illegal treatment Recovered (1 y)
Kim 2010 [7] Korea 72/F
Not stated
Back, shoulder, and right thigh Cutaneous tuberculosis infection Illegal treatment Recovered (9 mo)
75/F Not stated Back and thigh Cutaneous tuberculosis infection Illegal treatment Recovered (9 mo)
Macuha 2010 [45] USA 84/M Osteoarthritis Left groin Necrotizing fasciitis
Not specified Recovered (2 mo)
Buckley 2011 [46] UK 15/M Eczema Around the knee Staphylococcus  aureus endocarditis Not specified Recovered (3 mo)
Kuo 2011 [47] Taiwan 57/M LBP Bilateral paraspinal muscles MRSA Not specified Recovered (2 mo)
Castro-Silva 2011 [48] Brazil 59/M Ankle pain Limb Mycobacterium haemophilum infection Not specified Recovered (4 mo)
Hsieh 2011 [49] Taiwan 44/F Calf pain Calf Necrotizing fasciitis TCM doctor Recovered (21 d)

MRSA: methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus Infection.

NTM: nontuberculous mycobacterial skin infection.

*Acupuncture points.