Fertility and IVF Support with Chinese Medicine

Acupuncture and Chinese medicine to support you through trying to conceive, whether naturally or through IVF. Angela Koutsofrigas works with individuals and couples in Fitzroy North and Preston, drawing on more than twenty years in women's health and fertility. Book an initial consultation online, or get in touch to talk through where you are.

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Natural Fertility

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Many factors can get in the way of trying to conceive. In Australia, around 1 in 6 couples of reproductive age have difficulty with conception. As an experienced fertility practitioner, my view is simple: healthy eggs and healthy sperm make healthy babies, so the best outcomes come when both partners are involved in treatment and support.​

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Your initial fertility consultation

 

In your first consult, I carry out a thorough fertility check, so we can look at the bigger picture of what may be getting in the way. Some of what we cover:

 

• BBT charting and a biphasic cycle

• Period pain and PMS

• PCOS, endometriosis and fibroids

• Recurrent miscarriage

• Nutrition and fertility

• Adrenal support and stress relief

• Fatigue and overall wellness

• Sperm analysis and men's reproductive health

 

Where possible, around three months of treatment before trying to conceive allows time to prepare.

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Support through IVF and ICSI

 

​For those going through assisted reproduction, I offer:

• Pre- and post-transfer support

• Pain management

• Stress relief

 

Acupuncture is used alongside your medical care, not in place of it.

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What the research says

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Acupuncture has been studied widely as a support for fertility and IVF, with mixed early findings and more consistent results in later reviews:

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According to John McDonald and Stephen Janz's comprehensive research, The Acupuncture Evidence Project: A Comparative Literature Review from 2017, early reviews on the effectiveness of acupuncture on fertility and IVF included mixed results.

 

However, further systematic research reviews, for example by Qian and colleagues from 2017, have concluded that acupuncture does consistently improve the clinical pregnancy rate among women undergoing IVF.   

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Similarly, in one of the most comprehensive and balanced reviews to date, an Australian team of researchers (Cochrane et al. 2014) analysed acupuncture and fertility trials from over 100 reports from around the world, finding that the majority of trials on IVF patients using acupuncture reported increased pregnancy and/or live birth rates.

Finally, another systematic review report (Manheimer et al. 2008), including seven clinical research trials with 1366 women, found that women undergoing IVF treatment can improve their chances of falling pregnant by 65 percent by having acupuncture.
 

Taken together, these suggest acupuncture may be a useful support during fertility treatment, particularly IVF. Results vary from person to person.

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Common questions

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• When should I start treatment? Ideally around three months before trying to conceive, though it is never too late to begin.

• Do you treat men too? Yes. Both partners' health matters, and men's reproductive health is part of the picture.

• Can I have acupuncture during IVF? Yes. It is used alongside your medical care, with support before and after transfer.

• Where do you practise? Fitzroy North and Preston.