Misdiagnosis complicating acupuncture

A 33-year-old man, profoundly deaf since the age of 5 from meningitis, received 25 acupuncture treatments at a center in western Massachusetts. Subsequent hearing evaluation at the Yale New Haven Medical Center again confirmed his profound deafness. He also was found to have cerumen (rock-hard and long standing) in both ear canals. Final removal of the cerumen one week later permitted inspection of a normal eardrum on the right and a debris-filled retraction pocket on the left. The diagnosis of cholesteatoma was confirmed at surgery. Representatives of the medical profession should accept responsibility for adequate examination and diagnosis before starting treatment.