Unexplained Infertility Treated with Acupuncture and Herbal Medicine in Korea

Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2918430/

Women receiving Chinese herbal medicine treatments were more likely to get pregnant within a four-month period than those receiving conventional Western medical fertility drug treatment or IVF.

Results
One hundred and four (104) women with unexplained infertility were included in this observational study. Participant mean age was 32 years (SD: 2.7), with a range between 26 and 41 years. The median duration of infertility after diagnosis was 33.5 weeks (interquartile range: 20.8–50.3). In total, 41 participants (39.4%) had undergone a mean number of 1.4 (SD: 2.2) assisted reproductive technology treatments prior to joining the study. The number of patients remaining in or achieving pregnancy throughout the 6-month study period was 23 (14 pregnancies), 22.1%. Six (6) participants (4.8%) reported minor adverse events including rash in the face (n = 1), diarrhea (n = 2), dizziness (n = 1), and heartburn (n = 2). Of the 14 pregnancies, there were 10 normal births, and 4 miscarriages; otherwise, no neonatal morbidity/mortality occurred. According to per protocol analysis, 14 pregnancies out of 23 total were achieved by those who remained for the entire six menstruation cycle treatments, yielding a pregnancy rate of 60.9%.