Acupuncture-help, harm, or placebo? 


Author: Meldrum DR, Fisher AR, Butts SF, Su HI, Sammel MD.

Affiliation: Reproductive Partners Medical Group, Redondo Beach, California. Electronic address: drmeldrum@gmail.com. 
Conference/Journal: Fertil Steril. 
Date published: 2013 Jan 25
Other:
  Pages: S0015-0282(13)00008-3   ,  Special Notes: doi: 10.1016/j.fertnstert.2012.12.046   ,  Word Count: 188  
    

The most recent meta-analysis appearing in Fertility and Sterility on acupuncture was reevaluated in view of the marked heterogeneity of interventions, controls, data analysis, and timing of interventions in the trials that were included. After removing some of the trials and data based on more rigorous standards for a high quality meta-analysis, a significant benefit of the intervention could no longer be shown. When studies with and without placebo controls were analyzed separately, a placebo effect was suggested. Individual trials with a confidence limit below unity emphasized the potential for a detrimental impact on outcomes, which should be considered both in using acupuncture clinically as an adjunct for IVF and in design of future trials. Much more data that includes a placebo control will be required before a conclusion can be made that acupuncture has a true treatment effect on IVF outcomes. However, unless the timing and method of the acupuncture are standardized, practitioners will still have difficulty being sure that their particular method will help beyond the apparent benefit provided by a placebo.

Copyright © 2013 American Society for Reproductive Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

PMID: 23357452