Infertility is one of the most common and at the same time complex medical conditions that have an impact on the physical, emotional and financial level, for both women and men.

When a couple wishing to have a child, after repeated and different attempts reaches a dead end, they are ready to try any other available option. Among those options is the alternative treatment of Medical Acupuncture, a treatment that can be applied to treat various gynecological diseases.

Medical Acupuncture is unfortunately not the first choice of a couple, among all available infertility treatments.  However, it is one of the safest and most effective treatments that have been implemented to date.  Even in cases of IVF, Acupuncture is useful there as well, as it can be combined in order to achieve the desired result. In this case, a medical acupuncture session is held at our Institute on the day of the embryo transfer, and a subsequent session on the same, or the following day of the embryo transfer.

How can Acupuncture help in case of Infertility?

The effects of Μedical Αcupuncture on infertility treatment as well as the benefits, are manifold;  studies conducted around the world confirm it.

More specifically, recent studies have shown that through the treatment of Medical Acupuncture before and after each IVF attempt, pregnancy rate was improved by 50% compared to before. 

In particular, the use of Acupuncture in combination with any other way of assisted reproduction, has shown to increase the chances of pregnancy, and its healthy progression. The outcome is acquiring healthy babies. 

When the woman comes for Acupuncture, with the main causes of infertility being stress and anxiety, then we observe positive results from the very first sessions;   it is even better when there is no obvious cause (idiopathic infertility).

It should be emphasized that the Medical Acupuncture Institute follows and uses strict, predetermined, therapeutic acupuncture-protocols, applied by a specialized Physician / Acupuncturist. Next to discussion with the couple, these protocols are being adjusted to their needs.

When is the right time to start treatment with Acupuncture?

Contemporary scientific literature presents the positive results of Medical Acupuncture, consistently supported by new research on infertility.

Patients are usually advised to start treatment three to four months before the IVF procedure.

Furthermore, a study by the University of Gothenburg in Sweden found that success in embryo-transfer was increased, in women who underwent an Acupuncture treatment before and after the transfer of the fertilized egg.

In some cases, even without the help of classical medicine, i.e. only through the combination of Acupuncture and herbal medicines, pregnancy can be achieved.

The Distinctness of Medical Acupuncture  

The importance of Acupuncture lies in the fact that it works completely differently from drugs.  This is because at the Institute of Medical Acupuncture we focus on specific acupuncture points, we stimulate the nervous system consequently the whole system, acting on physiological mediators such as hormonal production, and the corresponding neurotransmitters.

From the very first treatment the woman enjoys a feeling of well-being and calmness, and is also relieved from possible disorders of her period.

The ways in which acupuncture helps in cases of infertility are:        

• Increased blood flow to the ovaries and endometrium
• Contribution to the regulation of the hormone gonadotropin (increase in ovulation rates)
• Increased β-endorphin (brain) hormone, has also been observed
• Increased number of eggs (initially follicles), their nourishment and stimulation
• Analgesic and anxiolytic action during intravaginal ovulation
• Decreased rate of ectopic pregnancies
• Easier fetus implantation after embryo transfer is made, due to restricted uterine contraction

What is the Process?

The process is completely painless as the needles used are extremely thin, especially made of stainless steel, and placed in distant points such as the hands, feet, and upper abdomen (above the navel area).

The number of sessions, their frequency and their pace, are determined by our Doctor/Acupuncturist, after he receives the patient’s history, and after he assesses the patient’s clinical picture, himself.

It is worth noting that acupuncture treatment does not interfere with any medication taken by the prospective mother, does not compete with it, but enhances its action.