Endometriosis and Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome are common within women who present with menstrual irregularities, pain or discomfort. Below we have outlined some information on both conditions. If you or someone you know present with either of these conditions and would like to know if Acupuncture can offer symptoms assistance in conjunction with your current health care plan, please get in contact with our team on: (07) 5515 0409. Our practitioners assist patients with post-surgery treatments for endometriosis who are about to embark on a pregnancy journey through ART/IVF methods. Many health practitioners may recommend acupuncture as an adjunct treatment that may assist with IVF treatment. There is continuing research about how acupuncture can assist with the effectiveness of IVF treatment. It is preferred that you consult with your treating practitioner about how acupuncture may be able to help you.
What is Endometriosis?
Common Symptoms of Endometriosis?
Although the cause of endometriosis still remains unclear (6), there are speculations of potential causes being related to hormonal imbalances, immune responses or chronic inflammation (2), a reaction to retrograde menstrual flow - which is a backward flow of menstrual blood and fluids through the fallopian tubes and into the pelvic cavity instead of flowing out of the body (2, 4).
Sharing awareness is crucial for endometriosis due to the varying symptoms between women that may contribute to a 7 – 10 year delay in an actual diagnosis of this condition (1, 4). Endometriosis can increase chances of fertility complications or other long-term health complaints. If you have an questions regarding ways Acupuncture may be able to assist your reproductive health please phone us on (07) 5515 0409.
For more information view our article Acupuncture for Endometriosis Gold Coast.
It is important to note, acupuncture does not treat the disease of Endometriosis or PCOS. Acupuncture may be able to assist with management of symptoms i.e pain, stress, fatigue or nausea associated with some autoimmune conditions in consultation with other treating health practitioners.
References:
PCOS is recognised as one of the most common endocrine and metabolic disorders in women with a prevalence of 6 -15 % in reproductive aged women (5). PCOS has no universally accepted definition and is known to have an array of different characteristics including (4):
Polycystic ovarian syndrome is broad, with many of its manifestations being interrelated. From a diagnostic point of view when being examined for PCOS your GP/Doctor will often require the presence of two of the following characteristics:
A systematic review and meta-analysis conducted on the effectiveness of Acupuncture in women with polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) undergoing in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) or intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) (1).
The study concludes that Acupuncture may increase clinical pregnancy rates and ongoing pregnancy rates. The study also found that Acupuncture might help reduce incidences of ovarian hyper-stimulation syndrome in women with PCOS undergoing IVF or ICSI (1).
Ongoing research is required to understand the mechanisms and efficacy of Acupuncture as an adjunctive therapy to assist women going through IVF and PCOS (1, 2, 7).
Another study was conducted to determine if regular Acupuncture with low frequency electro-acupuncture could improve menstrual frequency and decrease circulating testosterone in women with PCOS. The Acupuncture control group reported a higher ovulation frequency during treatments opposed to the other control group who underwent weekly meetings with a physical therapist. After 10 – 13 weeks of intervention the acupuncture control group concluded increases in ovulation and reductions in ovarian and adrenal sex steroid serum levels (3). Although there is some emerging clinical evidence, research is still ongoing and inconclusive. We always recommend you contact your practitioner to determine wether acupuncture can assist your symptoms.
In a study, Lim 2016 (Cochrane SR of 5 RCTs) Insufficient evidence; low to very low quality evidence that supports the use of acupuncture in PCOS and should be noted that research is ongoing and findings are unclear (6).
In a study, Ren 2014 (SR & MA of 31 studies), conclude that Acupuncture may be effective; low quality evidence (7).
References:
Lim CE, Ng RW, Xu K, Cheng NC, Xue CC, Liu JP, et al. Acupuncture for polycystic ovarian syndrome. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2016(5):Cd007689.
207. Ren LN, Guo LH, Ma WZ, Zhang R. [A meta-analysis on acupuncture treatment of polycystic ovary syndrome]. Zhen Ci Yan Jiu. 2014 Jun;39(3):238-46.