Assisted Reproduction (ART)

If a woman or couple decide to undergo assisted reproduction (IUI, IVF, ICSI), acupuncture treatments carried out at various key stages during the assisted procedures, particularly immediately before and after embryo transfer, can greatly enhance the likelihood of a pregnancy and they also help the woman to stay calm during what can be, for many women and couples a very stressful and anxious time.

A randomised study conducted in Germany took 160 patients undergoing ART (assisted reproductive therapy) with good quality embryos and divided them into two groups: embryo transfer with acupuncture (80 women) and embryo transfer without acupuncture (80 women). Clinical pregnancies were documented in 34 out of 80 patients (42.5%) in the acupuncture group, whereas the pregnancy rate was only 26.3% (21 of 80 patients) in the control group.

See "Influence of acupuncture on the pregnancy rate in patients who undergo assisted reproduction therapy" by Wolfgang E. Paulus MD, Christian-Lauritzen- Institut, Ulm, Germany 2001.