Comment on a letter to the editor: Is the pneumoretroperitoneum really developed after acupuncture?

摘要

We appreciate Dr. Lee's description1 on the practical aspects of acupuncture that we could not describe in our article.2 It was helpful for us because there has been little communication between traditional medicine (Korean medicine) and Western medicine in Korea.As Dr. Lee wrote, it may be very difficult to induce a pneumoretroperitoneum with acupuncture needles. However, a needle may reach the retroperitoneal space when it is inserted from back in the prone position. We have no idea on the exact origin of "the air" in this particular case, but it might be from room air penetrated during insertion of a needle without any intestinal injury.