Acupuncture & TCM Articles

What Are The Side Effects Of Acupuncture?

By: Karina Jacobsen

Although the incidences of serious side effects from the practice of acupuncture are rare, they do exist. Many of the side effects are minor, but since acupuncture involves puncturing the skin with needles, the potential does exist for harmful effects to occur.

But first of all, let’s define what acupuncture is. Acupuncture is a form of traditional Chinese medicine which has been practiced for centuries in China and has spread around the globe in modern times. It is widely practiced in many countries including the United States. Acupuncture involves piercing the skin with needles along the energy meridians of the body in an attempt to heal illness or treat addictions.

Now let’s look at some of the minor side effects which may occur. These are harmless and should clear up on their own without further treatment and include bruising, bleeding after removal of the needle, and psychological effects which might cause dizziness and fainting. These side effects are similar to what one would experience with a shot or having blood work drawn.

We will now examine the rare but serious side effects of Acupuncture.

Infection

Since the needles pierce the skin, there is the potential for introducing bacteria into the bloodstream and causing an infection at the puncture site or elsewhere in the body. An important consideration is the sterilization process of the needles to be used so that the chance of the needles being contaminated is reduced. Also improperly sterilized needles can transmit AIDS/HIV as well as other deadly diseases such as hepatitis and encephalopathy (mad cow disease.)

Nerve damage

Nerve damage can occur as a result of a nerve being pierced or nicked when inserting the Acupuncture needle.

Organ punctures

Inserting the needle deep into the lung can cause a pneumothorax to develop which means air will escape out of the lung and be trapped there causing the lung to collapse. The same potential exists for the other vital organs of the body. There is the chance a kidney or the protective sac around the heart could be punctured. There is also a risk of stroke induced by Acupuncture if the needle is inserted improperly at the base of the skull.

Luckily, acupuncturists are highly trained to avoid the above harmful consequences of acupuncture and indeed they are quite rare. To reduce your risks make sure you go to a licensed qualified practitioner and ask about their procedures for sterilizing needles.