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This article was published on the Holistic Junction web site on February 7, 2007 under the category Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine:
Acupuncture and IVF - The Secret of Success
by Brian Winkels
A number of reasons have been shown how acupuncture influences the results of in-vitro fertilization or IVF. Acupuncture has been shown to positively affect the levels of ovarian and pituitary hormones while electro-acupuncture treatment have shown to result in better and improved flow of blood in the uterine arteries of women who are infertile.
In conjunction with modern IVF therapy acupuncture, as a complementary therapy, is becoming more and more common. Studies has shown that acupuncture helps patients' better respond to medication as well as improving pregnancy rates and resulting in healthier eggs. Many women who have had problems with high FSH levels or who have had a miscarriage are being advised that acupuncture is the solution to their problems.
Higher Rates of Pregnancy Couples having difficulties in conceiving through traditional methods often turn to other techniques to assist them in having a child and one of the most used reproduction therapies currently being used is in-vitro fertilization. IVF is the process harvesting a woman's eggs and then fertilizing them with sperm via a laboratory.
Some studies have shown that pregnancy rates increase by as much as 40 percent for women undergoing acupuncture treatment in addition to IVF. Acupuncture makes a woman's uterus more receptive to implantation which is one of the major reasons attributed to these higher rates of success.
On a side note, for those women who do decide to combine acupuncture with their IVF it appears that's it's best to undergo their acupuncture treatment on the afternoon before the transfer of their embryos, as well as on the afternoon or day after the transfer.
Many women find IVF to be a stressful and anxiety ridden experience. These factors often result in undermining the success of IVF. However, on a positive note, a 2002 German study indicated that 34 out of 80 women who were undergoing IVF and who were also receiving acupuncture got pregnant - a success rate of 42.5 percent. To the uninformed this may not sound all that great but when compared to women undergoing IVF as a stand-alone treatment (no acupuncture) the pregnancy rate for those using acupuncture was significantly higher.
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