IVF And Acupuncture

Today, @marcyjulius is discussing one of her favorite acupuncture and IVF studies!

Acupuncture is well-known for having a positive effect on IVF outcomes, to the point where some fertility clinics even offer acupuncture in-house! However, based on a much older and somewhat outdated study, this service is often only utilized for two treatments immediately before and after embryo transfer. Is this helpful? Of course! But a more recent study followed 1,231 women who underwent IVF at the Northwest Center of Reproductive Sciences over 5 years (Rubin et al., 2015). This study compares those who did IVF alone, those who had acupuncture on the day of the embryo transfer only, and those who had acupuncture throughout their entire IVF cycle. The patients who were seeing an acupuncturist regularly received acupuncture, herbal medicine, electric stimulation, moxibustion, dietary and lifestyle recommendations etc., based on their individual pattern diagnoses. This group ended up being twice as likely to have a live birth than the group that did IVF alone, and 60% more likely than the transfer day only group. The lesson here? While we’re more than happy to see you on the day of your embryo transfer, acupuncture is so much more effective when done leading up to and throughout your entire IVF cycle.