Acupuncture, pregnancy and IVF

Acupuncture may help you get pregnant

You may be more likely to get pregnant and have a baby from IVF if you have acupuncture before or after IVF.
A recent review of research and studies carried out on the relationship between acupuncture and pregnancy in 4 western countries showed that women who had acupuncture immediately before undergoing embryo transfer were more likely to get pregnant and twice as likely to deliver and have a live baby. This was compared to women who had sham acupuncture or no acupuncture at all. This means that 10 patients undergoing IVF would have to have acupuncture to achieve one extra pregnancy.
Acupuncture has not been known to have any serious harmful effects, so for women having IVF, it may not be a bad idea. Considering the stress and expense that is involved in undergoing IVF, any action or therapy that can increase the success rates without side effects would be very welcome.