Acupuncture treatments for Infertility: Couple therapy and IVF encouragement

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 withhigh 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 thenfertilizing 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.

* Source: Report from the October 2004 meeting of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine and Highlights in Fertility and Sterility Volume 77, No 4, April 2004.