KH: Patient in South Korea dies from heart muscle rupture during acupuncture
20:54 28 October, 2026A South Korean practitioner of traditional Korean medicine has been fined 20 million won (approximately $15,000) following the death of a 92-year-old patient who underwent acupuncture treatment for back pain. The case was reported by The Korea Herald, citing a ruling by the Daejeon District Court.
According to the investigation, on August 14, 2022, the practitioner inserted three needles into the patient's chest. One of them injured the heart muscle, causing a small tear in the pericardium, the sac surrounding the heart.
After the procedure, the man complained of chest pain and difficulty breathing. However, investigators found that the practitioner failed to provide the necessary assistance for approximately 15 minutes. The patient lost consciousness and died later that day, about two and a half hours after the procedure began.
Prosecutors also noted that the practitioner had failed to check the patient's pulse or warn him about the risks of acupuncture in the chest area. The court took the severity of the consequences into account but reduced the penalty because the practitioner admitted guilt and reached a settlement with the victim's family.
Medical literature describes rare but potentially dangerous complications of acupuncture. Researchers primarily associate these injuries with incorrect needle depth, angle, or direction. In the chest, internal organs and major blood vessels lie relatively close to the body's surface.
A needle can injure the heart or cause bleeding into the pericardium. If blood accumulates in this sac and compresses the heart, a life-threatening condition known as cardiac tamponade can develop.
Doctors emphasize that anatomical knowledge and proper technique are particularly important when performing acupuncture on the chest. Chest pain or shortness of breath following the procedure requires immediate medical assessment. However, published studies describe the general mechanisms behind such injuries and do not constitute an independent assessment of every circumstance surrounding the patient's death in South Korea.