Recently researchers discovered that when acupuncture was combined with some pharmaceutical medications used to stimulate ovulation, it was more effective than hormonal pharmaceuticals alone for the treatment of infertility. The combination of acupuncture plus pharmaceuticals produced significantly higher pregnancy rates for women with anovulatory. This data was published in the report entitled Effects of Acupuncture on the Endometrium in Anovulatory Cases Treated by Clomiphene: A Clinical Observation.

The addition of acupuncture to pharmaceutical therapy increased pregnancy rates, lowered the resistance and pulsatility indices of the uterine arteries, and reduced the adverse effects caused by a pharmaceutical fertility drug. The increase in positive patient outcomes combined with reductions of adverse effects supports the findings of the research team’s from Taian Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital. Their conclusion, “TCM [Traditional Chinese Medicine] can be either applied alone or combined with Western medicine to up pregnancy rates and treat infertility. With the help of TCM acupuncture, treatment for infertility can be more effective while producing much less adverse effects.”

The researchers conclude that the addition of acupuncture to a pharmaceutical treatment regimen mitigates the drug’s adverse effects and ups the pregnancy rate.

The TCM acupuncture treatment protocol was as follows. Patients rested in a supine position. Upon disinfection, a 0.30 mm x 40 mm filiform needle was inserted into the following acupoints:
•CV4 (Guanyuan)
•CV3 (Zhongji)
•Zigong
•ST29 (Guilai)
•SP6 (Sanyinjiao)
•ST36 (Zusanli)

CV4, CV3, Zigong, and ST29 were inserted transverse-obliquely (15° angle) to a depth of 1–1.2 cm. SP6 and ST36 were needled perpendicularly and manipulated with the Ping Bu Ping Xie (tonify and sedate) technique. Additional acupoints were administered based on differential diagnostic patterns.

For liver qi stagnation, the following acupoint was added:
•BL18 (Ganshu)
For phlegm and dampness, the following acupoint was added:
•ST40 (Fenglong)

For blood stasis, the following acupoints were added:
•SP10 (Xuehai)
•LV2 (Xingjian).

Work Cited: Effects of Acupuncture on the Endometrium in Anovulatory Cases Treated by Clomiphene: A Clinical Observation. Journal of Taishan Medical College. 2016, 37(9):1029-1031.