On the Mark Health

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.

Tip - For more information on Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine, click on the
first link below.