title: Subarachnoid hemorrhage and spinal root injury caused by acupuncture needle--case report.
abstract: The authors report a case of subarachnoid hemorrhage and spinal root injury caused by an acupuncture needle buried in the posterior neck about 30 years before onset. A 33-year-old female presented with sudden onset of severe occipital headaches. Plain x-ray films of the cervical spine revealed a fine gold needle, about 1.5 cm in length, between the C1 and C2 vertebrae. The needle was piercing the spinal nerve root through the dural vein, and was removed. Postoperatively, the pain exacerbated by neck movement disappeared.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, Shimada Municipal Hospital, Shizuoka.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Murata
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Nishio
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Nishikawa
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ohinata
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sakaguchi
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Nishimura
mesh_terms: D015670:Acupuncture Therapy / Q000009:adverse effects*; D000328:Adult; D002574:Cervical Vertebrae / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D005260:Female; D005548:Foreign-Body Migration / Q000150:complications; D006801:Humans; D009339:Needles; D013119:Spinal Cord Injuries / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000209:etiology*; D013345:Subarachnoid Hemorrhage / Q000209:etiology*; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed