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Female Infertility
Acupuncture Treatments Offer Options for Hope
As a practitioner for the past
twenty years, one of the most rewarding experiences I have encountered is to
be part of a team of healthcare providers who successfully assist a couple
with having a baby. Recently acupuncture has been featured in many newspaper
articles and television programs for its therapeutic ability to increase the
chances for pregnancy during in vitro fertilization or IVF. An article
published by W. Paulus, M. Zhang, I. El-Danasouri, E. Strehler and K.
Sterzik entitled Influence of Acupuncture on the Pregnancy Rate in Patients
Who Undergo Assisted Reproduction Therapy, appeared in the April 2002 issue
of Fertility and Sterility (Fertility and Sterility, Vol.77, No.4,
Apr.2002). The authors concluded that “acupuncture seems to be a useful tool
for improving pregnancy rate after assisted reproductive techniques,” They
went on to say “The analysis shows that the pregnancy rate for the
acupuncture group is considerably higher than for the control group (42.5%
versus 26.3%).”
While more research on this clearly needs to be done, it is worth noting
that there have been studies to support our own empirical clinical
experience that shows acupuncture therapy as being effective for a wide
range of gynecological issues that may contribute to infertility and most
certainly affect a woman’s quality of life. It is recommended to begin
acupuncture well in advance of reproductive procedures to have the time to
treat these persistent issues. Conditions that we commonly treat along with
infertility issues include stress reduction, ovulatory dysfunction, early,
delayed or irregular menstruation, amenorrhea (absence of menstruation),
endometriosis, dysmenorrhea (painful menstruation), uterine fibroids,
ovarian cysts, menorrhagia (heavy uterine bleeding during menstruation),
metorrhagia (uterine bleeding between menstrual periods), chronic bladder
infections and polycystic ovarian syndrome.
Acupuncture has also demonstrated an ability to improve the sperm parameters
in of males as sited by Shealy et al., 1990; Gerhard et al., 1992; Siteman
et al., 1997). Studies have found that acupuncture twice per week has
improved the percentage of sperm viability, total number of motile sperm and
total functional sperm fraction. Since sperm maturation averages 70-90 days,
most acupuncture protocols recommend receiving treatments several months
prior to beginning the IVF procedure.
We have worked in conjunction with many fertility clinics and would be more
than happy to participate in a team approach to your health. To begin your
first consultation, please contact our office. We look forward to helping
you open a new avenue of possibilities.
- David Sollars, M.Ac.,
Lic.Ac., H.M.C
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