The Daily Mail reported an interesting review of seven published trials involving 1,366 women undergoing IVF in four different western countries who had acupuncture within one day of embryo transfer.
Researchers found a 65 % increased chance of pregnancy with acupuncture compared with sham acupuncture or no treatment while undergoing IVF. The benefit was smaller in trials where the baseline pregnancy rates were already high. However researchers said acupuncture may be cost-effective therapy in IVF compared with repeated fertility treatments.
Critics said the acupuncture benefit could be due to a placebo response but the authors said shame acupuncture did not increase the pregnancy rate among those women.
Source: "Effects of acupuncture on rates of pregnancy and live birth among women undergoing in vitro fertilisation: systematic review and meta-analysis" BMJ, February 7, 2008 BMJ, doi:10.1136/bmj.39471.430451.BE (published 7 February 2008) ( Full text via Athens)
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