Complementary and alternative treatments

Three complementary or alternative female infertility treatments have been scientifically tested, with results published in peer-reviewed medical journals.

1. Group psychological intervention: A 2000 Harvard Medical School study examined the effects of group psychological intervention on infertile women (trying to conceive a duration of one to two years). The two intervention groups—a support group and a cognitive behavior group—had statistically significant higher pregnancy rates than the control group
2. Acupuncture: Acupuncture performed 25 minutes before and after IVF embryo transfer increased IVF pregnancy rates in a German study published in 2002. In a similar study conducted by The University of South Australia in 2006, there was no statistically significant difference in fertility between the group which received acupuncture and the control group. Although definitive results of the effects of acupuncture on embryo transfer remain a topic of discussion, study authors state that it appears to be a safe - although not necessarily effective - adjunct to IVF.
3. Manual physical therapy: The Wurn Technique, a manual manipulative physical therapy treatment, was shown in peer reviewed publications to improve natural and IVF pregnancy rates in infertile women in a 2004 study,and to open and return function to blocked fallopian tubes in a 2008 study.The therapy was designed to address adhesions restricting function and mobility of the reproductive organs