Doctor fined as 92-year-old dies after needle tears heart muscle during chest acupuncture

A South Korean court has fined a doctor of traditional Korean medicine 20 million won (US$15,100) after a 92-year-old patient being treated for back pain died of a heart muscle tear from acupuncture on the chest.

Judge Koo Cheon-soo of the Daejeon District Court handed down the fine on charges including professional negligence resulting in death, legal sources said on Oct. 24, the Seoul Economic Daily reported. The doctor was also indicted for failing to prepare medical records and for obstruction of business.

The 68-year-old doctor, who runs a clinic in Geumnam-myeon, Sejong, was indicted for placing three needles in the patient's chest and inserting one of them too deeply, causing a minute tear in the heart muscle inside the pericardium, the sac around the heart, broadcaster SBS reported.

The acupuncture was performed at about 2:35 p.m. on Aug. 14, 2022, and the patient died at about 5:08 p.m. the same day, The Korea Herald reported.

Prosecutors said the doctor neither checked the patient's pulse nor explained the risks of needling the chest. After the patient complained of chest pain and showed signs of breathing difficulty, they said, the doctor left the patient unattended for about 15 minutes, until the patient lost consciousness.

A practitioner inserts acupuncture needles into a patient's skin. Illustration photo by Unsplash/Katherine Hanlon

The obstruction charge stemmed from boulders the doctor brought in with an excavator and left on the driveway of a cafe in Sejong on 12 occasions between September 2024 and February 2025, blocking customers' cars, SBS reported.

The doctor reportedly bore a grudge against the cafe's operator after the two split up.

"A grave outcome occurred in that the victim in the professional negligence case died, and the defendant committed the obstruction of business offense while under investigation in that case, which reflects poorly on the nature of the crime," the court said, according to the Seoul Economic Daily.

In mitigation, the court took into account that the doctor admitted the offenses and expressed remorse, reached an amicable settlement with the patient's bereaved family and deposited money with the court for the victim of the obstruction case.