Clinical Research

To describe the use of acupuncture to stimulate follicle development in women undergoing in vitro fertilization.

To evaluate the effect of acupuncture on reproductive outcome in patients treated with IVF/intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI). One group of patients received acupuncture on the day of ET, another group on ET day and again 2 days later ( i.e., closer to implantation day), and both groups were compared with a control group that did not receive acupuncture.

In a former published prospective randomized study we demonstrated the benefitt of acupuncture on the pregnancy rate in assisted reproduction therapy by comparing a group of patients receiving acupuncture treatment shortly before and after embryo transfer, with a control group receiving no acupuncture. To rule out the possibility that acupuncture produces only psychological or psychosomatic effects, we used a placebo needle set as a control in the present study.

The utility of acupuncture in the treatment of infertility has been demonstrated in two controlled studies. The first study determined the effect of reducing the Pulsatility Index (PI) of the uterine artery on reproductive outcomes; the second study described a Pre/Post embryo transfer protocol that enhanced overall pregnancy rates (PR). There are no studies that have utilized both techniques.

The purpose of this study was to determine the influence of these two acupuncture protocols on IVF outcomes and secondly to identify the appropriate patient groups that would most benefit from this adjunctive therapy.

To determine the role of electro stimulation acupuncture and traditional combined with auricular acupuncture on IVF outcomes in good prognosis patients.