[Complications of acupuncture (author's transl)]

During acupuncture in the chest region a right-sided pneumothorax developed in a 53-year-old woman which necessitated emergency admission to hospital. A reinflation of the lung could be achieved with two Bülau drains. The increasing frequency of acupuncture must remind one of the feasibility of lesions of internal organs including those of the abdomen. Complications due to insufficient disinfection of acupuncture needles may also arise.