For centuries, acupuncture has been used to treat some causes of infertility. Acupuncture is based on a Chinese belief in the balance of energy flow through the body. If this flow hits a blockage or imbalance, your health is negatively affected. Acupuncture needles, long and thin needles that vary in length based on insertion point, stimulate points to restore energy flow. Acupuncture is most effective for couples experiencing a functional problem like irregular ovulation, and is used as a complementary form of therapy with other treatments.
If you are experiencing basic problems like spasmd tubes, repeated pregnancy loss and unexplained infertility, acupuncture can effectively help you. It also treats FSH, luteal phase defect, hyperprolactinemia and PCOS. It is not as well-known that men can also receive infertility acupuncture, treating disorders like sperm-DNA-fragmentation.
If you are looking into infertility acupuncture, it is important to make sure that your acupuncturist specializes in treating infertility disorder. Your acupuncturist should also have appropriate training and certifications, which are mandated by the state or province. Having a certified professional reduces any risks that might come with fertility acupuncture. The one serious risk is that a miscarriage may occur if the acupuncturist hits the wrong point on a pregnant woman.
Acupuncture treatment procedures should happen once or twice a week, and will continue for anywhere from a few weeks to a few months. Remember the process may take more time than just twice a week if you are combining it with medical infertility treatments, like IVF. In general, the acupuncture treatment can be completed in 12 appointments. At each appointment, your acupuncturist will most likely take additional time to discuss your current condition and answer any questions that you may have.
As acupuncture is still somewhat controversial in the medical profession, research has been done to prove its validity. Researchers from across the world, from the Center for Integrative Medicine to Germany have performed tests and studies. The German research study compared two groups of 80 women attempting to get pregnant - the first used acupuncture and the second acted as a control group. 34 women from the acupuncture group got pregnant, while only 21 from the control group got pregnant. Another study found that if the acupuncture takes place on the same day as embryo transfer, the statistical rates improved significantly.
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