The Association between Self-Monitored Reproductive Parameters, Pregnancy Outcomes and Acupuncture Treatment

Mayumi Watanabe,Haiyan Fu,Yiwei Ling,Toru Abo,Minako Shimaya,Yoshinobu Nakamura,Chikako Tomiyama

doi:10.4236/health.2016.88076

Abstract

Many women track their daily basal body temperature (BBT), an important factor in reproductive status, as a part of fertility self-management. This study involved 135 patients who had undergone conventional infertility treatment; they had weekly acupuncture treatment and we assessed BBT, menstrual cycle, menstrual period and menstrual bleeding amount pre- and post-treatment. We also analyzed the rate of insufficient description of reproductive parameters, comparing patients who had delivered a baby with those who had a miscarriage and those who did not become pregnant. Menstrual cycle and period did not show notable changes pre- and post-acupuncture treatment in all groups. Menstrual bleeding amount decreased in the no-pregnancy group. There was a suggestion that acupuncture decreased very long menstrual cycle (e.g. bimonthly) to monthly. The insufficient description rate of menstrual bleeding amount was high in all groups. Weekly discussion about monitoring reproductive parameters could improve patients’ awareness in self-management. To prevent miscarriage patients needed psychological and medical advice for careful self-management in pregnancy and menstrual cycle.

Highlights

The consequences of infertility can have negative impacts on women’s lives because the conflux of personal, interpersonal, social, and religious expectations can bring a sense of failure, loss, and exclusion to those who are infertile [1] [2].In the 1920s, Dr Kyusaku Ogino established a technique to identify the date of ovulation to help women time intercourse to achieve pregnancy [3]
As compliance with completing the charts was not 100%, we analyzed the differences in missing data between the delivery, miscarriage and no-pregnancy groups
Patients were divided into three groups: a delivery group (n = 57; age range 21 - 47 years; age mean 32.5 ± 5.3 years), a miscarriage group (n = 36; 21 - 45; 35.7 ± 5.5) and a no-pregnancy group (n = 42; 21 - 42; 31.2 ± 4.8)

Summary

Introduction

In the 1920s, Dr Kyusaku Ogino established a technique to identify the date of ovulation to help women time intercourse to achieve pregnancy [3]. This discovery paved the way for modern reproductive treatment. Many women track their basal body temperature (BBT) every day, as it is an important indicator for reproduction and a useful tool for effective self-management. The current study aimed to use a specialized chart to track the reproductive parameters BTT, menstrual cycle, menstrual period and bleeding amount in women who had undergone conventional fertility treatment. As compliance with completing the charts was not 100%, we analyzed the differences in missing data between the delivery, miscarriage and no-pregnancy groups

Methods

Results

Conclusion