A village clinic in central China’s Henan province has been closed after a patient’s partner claimed its acupuncture therapy caused skin ulcers in over 200 patients, Sixth Tone’s sister publication The Paper reported Wednesday.
In a social media post Tuesday, a man surnamed Zhu claimed that his wife had visited the clinic in July to have her leg pain treated and started weekly acupuncture sessions with a doctor surnamed Fan. After the third treatment, she experienced itchiness, Zhu said, and observed that her skin was swollen where the needles had been inserted. The patient’s situation worsened as the swollen areas become open sores, according to photos included in the now-deleted post.
When Zhu and his wife confronted the doctor, he told them the irritation was due to the patient showering and applying iodine to the affected area, according to the post. Fan suggested that the couple seek treatment at a county-level hospital — but after two months, Zhu said, her condition still had not improved. Zhu further claimed in his post that he had become aware of over 200 patients who had experienced similar issues after receiving the clinic’s acupuncture therapy.
A staff member from the Qi County health bureau, where the village clinic is located, told The Paper that the facility had closed after its business license was revoked over violations of medical regulations. A separate local health authority later confirmed to the outlet that the sores had been caused by poorly sterilized needles.
(Image: The Paper)
(Copy URL and open in browser)