A Case Report of a Patient With Post-COVID-19 Dysphagia Who Required Antibiotics Following Intraoral Acupuncture

The purpose of this case report is to highlight an uncommon adverse event following a new form of acupuncture, intraoral acupuncture. An adult male patient who had been endotracheally intubated as part of COVID-19 treatment experienced swallowing difficulty. After being treated by a speech therapist for nine months, he started undergoing intraoral acupuncture for his dysphagia. Following this treatment, he developed local ulceration on his uvula and palatopharyngeal arches two days after the treatment. Due to a high suspicion of acupuncture-induced local infection, his physician gave a course of oral antibiotics for the intraoral ulcerations. The lesions completely healed 14 days after the ulcerations were initially observed. This case underscores the importance of vigilance and monitoring for adverse events in acupuncture practice.