Acupuncture has shown to be an effective complementary therapy in improving embryo quality during in vitro fertilization, especially when used in personalized treatment regimens.
The researchers carried out a systematic review and meta-analysis to evaluate the role of acupuncture in IVF. They searched various medical and scientific databases to source relevant data and included research trials that compared IVF, performed with or without intracytoplasmic sperm injection, combined with acupuncture, to IVF performed alone or with sham/placebo acupuncture in women with fertility issues. The studies included had no restrictions on race, age, or nationality. The main parameters evaluated were primarily the high-quality embryo rate, followed by the number of oocytes retrieved, the high-quality oocyte rate, and the fertilization rate.
The evaluation included eighteen studies which indicated that acupuncture improved the high-quality embryo rate and high-quality oocyte rate during IVF, as well as the fertilization rate. Acupuncture was found to enhance the number of oocytes retrieved, especially in women with a higher follicle-stimulating hormone level. Further examination also revealed that the improvement in embryo quality was more noticeable when acupuncture was carried out over shorter courses of 5-8 sessions, whereas a higher number of oocytes were retrieved with longer acupuncture regimens of more than 12 sessions.
