Low Frequency Electro-Acupuncture and Physical Exercise Induces Menstruation in A Young Woman with Amenorrhea Related to Polycystic Ovary Syndrome: A Case Report

Abstract

Objectives: We report a successful case in a young woman with amenorrhea related to polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) following low-frequency electro-acupuncture (EA) and physical exercise. Subject: A 26-year-old woman had secondary amenorrhea since 2002 and was diagnosed to have PCOS in 2007. She always took medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA) for getting withdrawal bleeding every 3 months from 2002 to 2007. She had been treated with metformin, ethinylestradiol, cyproterone acetate tablets (Dyne-35) and Chinese medicine on an irregular basis from 2007 to April in 2012. When she attended our clinic, she had suffered from amenorrhea for 4 months as she stopped taking any medicine. Interventions: The patient did regular physical exercise and received two courses of acupuncture treatment separated by an interval of 5 months. Each course of acupuncture treatment included 32 sessions of low-frequency EA. Results: During the first course of EA treatment, she did not have any period returned. However, in the subsequent five months without any treatment, her periods returned four times. During the second EA treatment course, the patient had period for three times. Her abnormal high serum LH/FSH ratio reduced obviously and the morphology of polycystic ovaries was not found on pelvic scanning. During the following four months after the second EA treatment course, the patient had period for three times, and her sex hormone profile and ovarian morphology still keeped normal. Conclusion: This case illustrated that acupuncture and physical exercise can be an effective treatment for PCOS patients with ovulatory disorder.