Acupuncture to help with egg quality ?

[xCrystalQueenx]

I know studies have shown it improves blood flow to ovaries , and your eggs require good blood flow. Did anyone find it helped at all with egg quality ? I have pcos and know this is compromising my egg quality and I'm also 38 . My blood flow hasn't been great since I've done lots of medicated cycles of clomid. I'll he starting ivf next month.
All clinics are fully booked out until later October and the only clinic that could offer me acupuncture during my ivf is 80 miles away. I just don't know weather its worth the effort and time of travelling so I'm really just wondering did anyone actually find it of benefit. ?

There is no good quality evidence it is of any benefit. There is also no good quality evidence of anything to improve egg quality. I would be highly sceptical of any clinic recommending or selling acupuncture as a useful adjunct to fertility treatment.

@SErunner my clinic are not recommending it in conjunction with treatment
. I am considering it as I've read studies that there is evidence to show it increases blood flow which is what my aim is. Without good blood flow to the ovaries, that has been shown to impact quality.
I know the studies on improving ivf outcomes are mixed , which is why I would love to hear from women who had acupuncture.
I disagree that you can't improve egg quality. I have pcos , which there are many studies that demonstrate that pcos egg related quality can be improved .

The studies about acupuncture and IVF aren't mixed - there are no decent studies showing benefit. Same for reflexology, Chinese herbs, etc. No reputable clinician would recommend or advocate you taking them/using them and well known authorities on IVF recommend you don't. Same for supplements and improving egg quality. Beyond good diet and having a healthy BMI there isn't much else you can do. Even the evidence on reducing alcohol and caffeine is weak despite that being common place. It's up to you what you do of course, I personally do take some supplements despite the lack of evidence as I figure it can't hurt and I don't drink or have caffeine. I personally wouldn't waste money on acupuncture etc.

I am currently doing my second IVF stimulation round (retrieval will be this week) and I have been doing acupuncture for months. The main reason for me has been to help with stress and anxiety and I feel it has definitely helped here (along with meditation).
i asked the acupuncturist (who is also a medical doctor GP) if it would help improve my fertility and she replied ‘it will definitely help you feel more relaxed and that will help’.
i live in France and am lucky that it is covered by the National health system here so I don’t pay. But i think if I were you I would not travel 80km for this, especially given the scientific research on fertility as an outcome (as opposed to stress/anxiety).
Good luck :)

I did 5 rounds of IVF - did acupuncture on 4 of them - the only cycle I didn't do it due to covid lockdown was the one that worked and I had twins 😳 - I did enjoy it and found it relaxing but I wouldn't base the success/failure of your treatment on it

I was doing Japanese acupuncture for a while with no results, I went to him after my SIL fell pregnant with him twice from having acupuncture, sadly both ended in ectopic.
I've now changed to Chinese acupuncture and already seen that is helped with a cyst and fibroid.

I've been to a very reputable clinic in UK who does recommend acupuncture and requests herbs are stopped as soon as treatment starts. I'm now with a clinic overseas who also recommends acupuncture and has an available acupuncturist when going through treatment. Its' definitely help relax and when in treatment keep hormones balanced, blood flow increase as I have had issues when uterus lining being too thin.

Everyone's experience will be different, try it and see how it is for you.

@SErunner I disagree. There are studies that show it as a postive add on treatment.
There's a study published from July 23 on almost 5000 women . Just because something is not medically recognised doesn't mean it dosent help.
It does improve blood flow ( which that in itself can improve implantation rates ) and that's what op said she aim is. I've been on clomid too and it does indeed restrict your blood flow and affect your lining. the blood flow is essential for egg health. Even fertility doctors acknowledge that and its been shown in studies to reduce cortisol levels , which can affect hormones.
Regarding egg quality. OP has stated she has PCOS. Your entitled to an opinion but to say nothing can improve egg quality for pcos patients is factually incorrect. There are many studies on pcos related egg quality and all have demonstrated improvement
Metformin and inositol are well studied and its medically recognised world wide. Even the NHS prescribe Metformin to women with pcos and all fertility clinics recommend women with pcos to take metformin prior to fertility treatment. Alot of NHS consultants now recommend inositol to pcos women aswell to improve their egg quality.

@OhChacha do you know if inositol is the same as myo-inositol and if this also good for egg quality for those who doe not have PCOS but age related quality concerns?

I did weekly acupuncture sessions for about 4 months during my two stim cycles. I don’t have any evidence of what the results would have been without it (so I can’t really comment on whether it made a difference) but both times most of my eggs retrieved were mature. In the first round 100% of eggs retrieved were mature and in the second round 93% were mature. It generally made me feel good, also helped with the recovery after extraction. If nothing else it’s one hour where you are forced to lie still on a table so it’s almost like forced meditation lol. I’m not sure I’d drive 80 miles for it though. Mine was a 20 minute walk away.

@OhChacha you can disagree but clinical research doesn't support its use. You can't extrapolate the outcome of a study showing improved to blood flow to argue this means it will help with fertility. Study quality isn't just about number of people included. Leading authorities in fertility treatment state it is not worth spending money on, i'm not sure why you would presume to know better. Of course anyone can choose to undertake whatever treatment they wish, but they should do so knowing facts not anecdotal recommendations, especially when money is involved as part of already expensive treatment.

Metformin is used in PCOS to regulate cycles and support ovulation, not to improve egg quality. Same for inositol albeit through a different mechanism, although the evidence for this is very limited to poor quality studies. Neither are used to improve egg quality.

@SErunner by addressing the insulin sensitivity, it does help with egg quality. It also reduces androgens. Both of which impair egg quality in pcos. There are reputable studies that show the benefit of metformin on eggs . Same as inositol.

No offence, but I have pcos and I've been through fertility treatment. I'd rather listen to a trained medical professional in the fertility field who prescribed these to me and who has seen the benefit from other pcos women too .
I attempted 3 egg collections and none of my eggs collected were mature enough, we couldn't even get to the fertilisation stage . On second i had two mature follicles 1 fertilised but 1 didnt divide properly it was low grade occtye. We took metformin and inositol for minimum 3 months as told before we attempted another collection and we were able to get several mature eggs and got 3 blasts in the end up. The clinic said it was a huge difference compared to my previous collections and I couldn't have asked for better results. I'm taking my experience and that of my clinic / multitude of studies over someone who says it dosent work. Sorry.
@xCrystalQueenx do what you feel is right. I did acupunctureand t it definitely helped with blood flow. My period flow was alot better and my lining had improved ( I did 6 cycles of clomiphene) I also have had zero pain down there. I was struggling on a daily basis. I.found it really helped with the whole body really. It's a little uneasy at first but it's incredibly relaxing. Anything that relaxes helps as ivf can be very stressful. P.s I also found it useful for thinning hair . If you condition is causing that mention it to your practioner. My bald patch has lots of baby hair nows

The problem with these clinical trials , weather they advocate or disprove , is that they are too small.
There are hundreds of studies but when you narrow it down to studies that compare sham acupuncture vs acupuncture the number is much more manageable.
The best study to date which was conducted in Australia still only consisted of 800 couples. When you compare that to other studies like a Danish study which consisted of 600 and a Chicago study with only 160. Thats a relatively small number , your talking just over 1500. In the UK alone , I don't know current statistics but in 2021 there were 76, 000 ivf cycles in HFEA licensed clinics.
I'm not for , or against but I don't think anyone should sit here and argue with someone that it dosent help , especially when your basing it on limited clinical studies. I think it should be left as per OP requested , to those with personal experience rather than trying to argue an invalid point. Nobody knows for sure . If you don't have personal experience with acupuncture then it's best to stay out of the conversation rather than for the sake for being argumentive

p.s the most recognised study was conducted only on FRESH IVF cycles. Therefore in my opinion its of little value. It also failed at including sham acupuncture control groups @SErunner

@MoonstoneGoddess @KosmicK you're saying exactly what I said - listen to the professionals. Leading authorities in IVF state clearly acupuncture does not help. Why would I or you presume to know better? I only commented because I get fed up seeing people being encouraged to pay through the nose for treatments that don't work due to individuals anecdotes. If it helps you feel relaxed or your enjoy it, of course go ahead, but don't pay for it solely to aid fertility treatment - it doesn't.

Hi, I tried acupuncture for a couple of sessions and really didn’t enjoy it. I felt it was just one more app to get prodded and poked at. But completely understand when people do it for stress and because they enjoy it etc.
I have a very severe form of lean PCOS. I’m in my late 30s and have tried metformin and different brands of inositol and neither have shown any significant improvement on my bloods or scan results.
I did an egg collection earlier this year, collected 37 eggs and have 12 top quality day 5 blastocysts. Currently 11 in the freezer and the 5AA blastocyst was transferred earlier this week.
The only supplements that I take are Inofolic Alpha, Omega 3 and Vitamin D. I’m more about a lifestyle that consists of a healthy diet with the odd treat, a healthy BMI and exercise every day and the obvious which is try to reduce stress. Which I find is crazy to say to people dealing with infertility!

@OhChacha just a message to say I appreciate your message. Have you looked into glutathione injections? I’m at transfer stage, but if I were to try again I’m dosing up.