Risks Involved

There are a few adverse effects of acupuncture therapy according to a survey by Ernst et al. This survey performed over 400 patients receiving around 3500 acupuncture treatments found some adverse effects of this treatment.

They include –

• Minor bleeding at the site of needle insertion after removal of the needle. Just holding a ball of cotton over the site is usually enough to stop this bleeding. This was found in about three percent of the patients undergoing treatment.

• Hematoma was found to manifest in around two percent of the patients undergoing treatment in the form of bruises. This usually went away after a few days.

• Dizziness is another effect seen in about one percent of the patients. This is due to the patient’s subconscious fear of needles. Patients are normally made to lie down during treatment. This reduces the risk of the patient fainting.

This survey concluded that just like any other therapeutic approach, acupuncture also has a few adverse effects. It is a safe procedure if used according to established safety rules and at appropriate regions.

Apart from these, there are certain other risks of injury due to the insertion of acupuncture needles like –

• Injury to the nerves due to accidental puncturing.

• Rare cases of brain damage or even stroke due to deep needling at the base of the patient’s skull.

• Condition called Pneumothorax due to deep needling into the patient’s lungs.

• Damage to the kidney due to deep needling in the lower back.

• Puncture of the protective membrane covering the heart also called the Haemopericardium. This may occur due to needling over the sternal foramen which is actually a hole in the breastbone occurring due to congenital defect.

• Risk of termination of pregnancy by using certain accupoints which have been proven to stimulate production of adrenocorthicotropic hormone or ACTH and Oxytocin.

These risks can be avoided by making sure you go to a well trained acupuncturist who knows his job.

Another risk factor is when the patient depends entirely on acupuncture treatment and omits going to a allopathic doctor. According to some doctors, doing this could be risky as disease which is not diagnosed on time may worsen and lead to complications.

This is the reason doctors advice going in for acupuncture as a complementary therapy rather than an alternative therapy.

Apart from this, there is also the risk of patients getting conned by unethical or naïve practitioners who try to exhaust the patient’s resources by giving them ineffective treatment.

However there are remote chances of this happening because almost all countries these days have recognized the benefits of acupuncture and have instituted regulatory measures thereby raising the level of this procedure.

Comparing the safety aspect of acupuncture to other treatments, the NIH consensus has stated that adverse side effects of acupuncture are very low, much lower than conventional treatments.