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A CASE OF SUDDEN DEATH DUE TO BILATERAL TENSION PNEUMOTHORAX AFTER ACUPUNCTURE
We report a case of sudden, unexpected death of a 71-year-old woman due
to bilateral pneumothorax after acupuncture. The patient experienced dyspnea and
subsequently died 6 hours after acupuncture. Autopsy revealed remarkable inferior
displacement of the left hemidiaphragm and hemorrhages on the surface of both inferior
pulmonary lobes. The deceased had no risk factors for pneumothorax; no underlying
pulmonary disease was found and the needles had not been inserted at dangerous
therapeutic points. To our knowledge, this is the first report of a death due to
pneumothorax after acupuncture that occurred in the absence of relevant risk factors