Helix Clinic blog

Some women who are having trouble getting pregnant get worried at the thought of all the drugs involved in assisted reproduction treatments like IVF. However, it is possible to do IVF in a natural cycle without hormonal stimulation.

A natural IVF cycle basically involves collection of a naturally produced egg, followed by fertilisation in laboratory and subsequent replacement of the embryo. It is less expensive and less invasive than a normal IVF cycle and in addition, because no drugs are used to stimulate the ovaries, it can be easily repeated in following cycles if unsuccessful after the first go.

The only thing is that success rates tend to be low compared to stimulated cycles. However, for women who don’t want to take conventional fertility medicine, or who can’t take fertility medicines, this treatment could be an option to consider. For example, women who are ovulating and have damaged tubes may wish to try a natural cycle of IVF before moving on to stimulated IVF.

Obviously, the natural IVF cycle fits well with the natural approach of acupuncture. No research has yet been done to see if the natural IVF success rates are improved if women also have acupuncture treatment, but based on previous studies of acupuncture and IVF it could be an interesting study to look at.

Tags: fertility, infertility, IVF, natural cycle

Today a patient asked me about research studies that have been done looking at the effects of acupuncture for Multiple Sclerosis, and off the top of my head I couldn’t think of any major ones so did a bit of searching on the web to see what was out there. There have been a few small scale studies but overall it is a little surprising how few studies have evaluated acupuncture in Multiple Sclerosis. I did make one interesting finding though.

The Rocky Mountain Multiple Sclerosis Center is a centre for the study of MS founded in 1978 by 2 men dedicated to finding the causes of MS and a cure for the disease. In 1999, the Rocky Mountain MS Center began to collect information about complementary and alternative medicine (CAM), and now provide state-of-the-art information on MS and CAM. They offer what seems to be a unique approach to research, using technology to survey large numbers of people living with MS on the effectiveness and safety of various interventions used to treat MS.

A survey carried out by the center reported the results collected from more than 1000 MS patients. It was not a controlled study, but nevertheless seemed to show promising results for the treatment of MS symptoms with acupuncture. About 20% of the respondents had used acupuncture since their initial diagnosis, and about two thirds of those reported an improvement in the symptoms of pain and anxiety. Other symptoms that were reported as improved by between 50% and 60% of respondents were fatigue, depression, muscle stiffness, numbness and insomnia. Only 4% of patients noticed a worsening of any pre-existing MS symptoms with acupuncture.

Tags: multiple sclerosis