Rediscovered by Accident

In 1999, a patient who had been suffering from Trigeminal Neuralgia for seven years was treated with acupuncture. The stimulation with conventional ASP needles on the Trigeminus point of the ear was administered by applying strong pressure on the needle which alleviated the patient´s pain.
After three weeks, the patient (a lady) came back to the surgery to thank the doctor for his successful treatment. She was free of pain and regarded herself as cured.

Palpating the ear, the doctor found a tiny lump on the Trigeminus point: the ingrown ASP needle! As it represented a foreign object, it had to be removed. Shortly after removal under local anesthetics, the trigeminal pain reappeared with full ferocity. More than 20 conventional acupuncture sessions could not restore the initial success.