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Influence
of acupuncture on the pregnancy rate in patients who undergo assisted
reproduction therapy.
Paulus WE, Zhang M, Strehler E, El-Danasouri I, Sterzik K.
Department of Reproductive Medicine, Christian-Lauritzen-Institut, Ulm,
Germany
Objective: To evaluate the effect of acupuncture on the pregnancy rate in
assisted reproduction therapy (ART) by comparing a group of patients
receiving acupuncture treatment shortly before and after embryo transfer
with a control group receiving no acupuncture. Design: Prospective
randomized study. Setting: Fertility center. Patient(s): After giving
informed consent, 160 patients who were undergoing ART and who had good
quality embryos were divided into the following two groups through random
selection: embryo transfer with acupuncture (n = 80) and embryo transfer
without acupuncture (n = 80). Intervention(s): Acupuncture was performed in
80 patients 25 minutes before and after embryo transfer. In the control
group, embryos were transferred without any supportive therapy. Main
Outcome Measure(s): Clinical pregnancy was defined as the presence of a
fetal sac during an ultrasound examination 6 weeks after embryo
transfer. Result(s): Clinical pregnancies were documented in 34 of 80
patients (42.5%) in the
acupuncture group,
whereas pregnancy rate was only 26.3% (21 out of 80 patients) in the
control group. Conclusion(s): Acupuncture seems to be a useful tool for
improving pregnancy rate after ART. |
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