Acupuncture for IVF Support
IVF asks a lot of your body in a short window of time so acupuncture works alongside your clinic's protocol to support the systems that are under the most pressure: blood flow to the uterus and ovaries, down regulating any stress response, and the inflammatory environment that your embryo will hopefully implant into.
What the evidence says
Acupuncture increases uterine artery blood flow, which matters for endometrial thickness and receptivity, and helps to downregulates the sympathetic nervous system, taking you from fight-or-flight into rest-and-digest which is a more optimal environment to support successful pregnancy as cortisol and stress hormones can influence implantation.
From a TCM perspective, IVF stimulation takes it toll on Kidney Jing and Blood, and treatment supports the body's capacity to build follicles and lining without leaving you depleted for whatever comes next, whether it’s your first of fourth round.
WHAT TREATMENT ENTAILS
Treatment is mapped to your protocol phase and to how your body is responding on the day:
· Pre-cycle (ideally 8-12 weeks out): we focus on building baseline blood flow and regulating cycle patterns before stimulation starts
● Stimulation phase: we focus on supporting follicular development, and easing the physical and emotional load of daily injections and monitoring
● Egg retrieval: we work on calming the nervous system
● Transfer day: pre- and post-transfer sessions are timed around your clinic appointment, supporting blood flow and reducing uterine contractility
● Two week wait: we focus on reducing anxiety while supporting implantation
IVF FAQ’s
Can acupuncture improve IVF success rates?
Research has found that with acupuncture support, conception rates via IVF can improve from 26.3% to 42.5%. Further studies including a landmark BMJ analysis pooled data from 1,366 patients and confirmed that acupuncture significantly increases the success of IVF treatment.² Put simply, the research suggests one additional pregnancy for every 10 IVF cycles supported with acupuncture.
When should I start acupuncture before IVF?
Ideally 2-3 months before your cycle starts as this allows plenty of time to influence egg quality and lining patterns, though is can still be beneficial to begin if you’ve left it up until the start of your medication as it’s particularly beneficial for helping balance out any side effects.
Do I need acupuncture on transfer day specifically?
It's the session most requested, and there's good evidence behind it for uterine blood flow, but it works best as part of a course through the cycle rather than a one-off, which is why committing to a period beforehand is generally advised.
1) Paulus, et.al. Fertility and Sterility Vol: 77, No. 4, APRIL 2002
2) Manheimer E, Zhang G, Udoff L, et al. Effects of acupuncture on rates of pregnancy and live birth among women undergoing in vitro fertilisation: systematic review and
meta-analysis. BMJ 2008;336(7643):545-549.