Abstract
Background context
Muscle needling therapy is common for chronic pain management, but the development
of unusual complications such as hemiplegia is not well understood.
Purpose
We report on three cases with hemiplegia after cervical paraspinal muscle needling
and propose possible explanations for these unusual complications.
Study design
Case report.
Methods
The authors retrospectively reviewed the medical charts from a decade (2002-2013)
at Korea University Hospital. The records were systematically searched, and the cases
with hemiplegia (grade<3) after needing therapy were collected. No conflict of interest
reported. No funding received.
Results
A 54-year-old woman, a 38-year-old woman, and a 60-year-old man with hemiplegia by
cervical subdural or epidural hematoma after cervical posterior paraspinal muscle
needling without direct invasion (intramuscular stimulation, acupuncture, or intramuscular
lidocaine) were observed. All patients were taken for emergent decompressive laminectomy,
and their postoperative motor function improved substantially.
Conclusion
Spinal hematoma after muscle needling is unusual but was thought to result after a
rupture of the epidural or subarachnoid veins by a sharp increase in blood pressure
delivered in the intraabdominal or intrathoracic areas after needling therapy.
Keywords
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: November 14, 2014
Accepted:
November 8,
2014
Received in revised form:
September 22,
2014
Received:
December 27,
2013
Footnotes
FDA device/drug status: Not applicable.
Author disclosures: GYJ: Nothing to disclose. CHO: Nothing to disclose. W-SC: Nothing to disclose. J-BL: Nothing to disclose.
The authors GYJ and CHO contributed equally to this report and should be considered as co-first authors.
The authors declare no conflicts of interest related to this article. In addition, they have no proprietary, commercial, or financial interests that could have inappropriately influenced this study.
This study has not been presented in full or in part elsewhere.
Identification
Copyright
© 2015 Elsevier Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
