The use of acupuncture in partnership with IVF has long been a topic of interest for fertility patients. Although the results of clinical studies have been somewhat inconsistent, a recent summary of all the research appeared in the British Medical Journal. It suggested that there is a marked improvement in both the pregnancy rate and the delivery rate when these treatments are combined. Specifically, they found the benefits occurred if acupuncture was performed within a day of having an embryo transfer. Some studies had acupuncture the day before and up to two days following embryo transfer. The bottom line was that there was a benefit for many who chose to combine these practices.
A previous study did find that there was a slight drop in pregnancy rates in
patients that had acupuncture and IVF but the researchers felt that may have been
due to stress of running between offices.
The problem with the studies on
acupuncture is that we still don't know why or how it works so we can't clearly
answer who benefits most. What I can share is that studies suggest it benefits
the following situations:
1.) stress reduction
2.) women with a poorly developed endometrium
3.) recurrent early pregnancy loss/immunologic factors
4.) PCOS
It is also very beneficial to reduce pain in women with endometriosis and more
recently some studies suggest that it can improve sperm count/quality in men
with mild male factor.
If you have questions for Dr. Greene, go to haveababy.com and ask away.
Laurie Tarkan is the co-author of Perfect Hormone Balance for Fertility and Perfect Hormone Balance for Pregnancy. She writes for the New York Times and national magazines and is also the author of My Mother's Breast: Daughters Face Their Mothers' Cancer.
Check out Laurie's recent post on the Huffington Post.
Toxic Wombs
and infertility related articles:
Lowering Odds of Multiple Births
and
Are Men Overlooked at Fertility Centers
