Acupuncture helps to regain the consciousness of a COVID-19 patient complicated with hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy: a case report

摘要

Dear Editor, Complications such as cardiac arrest due to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) may occur during treatment, and the sequelae of hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) [1] worsens the condition. We report a patient with COVID-19 pneumonia complicated with HIE after cardiac arrest who regained consciousness after early acupuncture therapy. A 73-year-old male chef with hyperlipidemia and a history of intracerebral hemorrhage was admitted for the deterioration of COVID-19 pneumonia on April 11, 2020. Due to rapidly progressive dyspnea, emergency tracheostomy was performed for the difficult airway, and mechanical ventilation has started since April 13. Empiric antibiotics and medication with potential benefits were administered. On April 27, the patient tested negative for COVID-19 three times with clinical improvement, and ventilator support was removed.