Category: Pregnancy

The use of a technique adjunctive to acupuncture, to turn breech babies, has been investigated by researchers at Thames Valley University.

The technique, known as moxibustion, involves the burning of a herb to gently warm an acupuncture point on the little toe. Moxa for breech presentation has been routinely practised by acupuncturists for centuries. In China, mothers with a breech baby practise this in their own homes, whereas in the UK, mothers who are aware of the technique, will consult a private acupuncturist.

This study enrolled 76 women who had presented at private acupuncture practices across the UK, and who were between the 32nd and 38th week of pregnancy. Acupuncturists instructed the women in the use of a standardised procedure to undertake at home daily for seven days.

Of the 62 women on whom full data was available at the end of the study, 44.7% experienced a turning of their baby. Best results seemed to be obtained when the treatment was administered in the afternoon. The authors conclude that moxibustion can bring about spontaneous version from breech to cephalic presentation, and can therefore provide this group of women with an option for a vaginal birth.

(Management of Breech Presentation with the use of Moxibustion in Women in the UK. The European Journal of Oriental Medicine Vol 6 no1.)

Researchers in Brazil have shown that acupuncture may help relieve indigestion in pregnancy. Forty-two pregnant women aged 15 to 39, and with dyspepsia, were randomly allocated to receive either acupuncture or standard care. Acupuncture was given once a week, or twice if the symptoms were severe, for an eight week period. The acupuncture group exhibited significant improvements, and also used less medication. The authors conclude that dyspepsia in pregnancy is a very common problem. The use of medication is always a concern. Acupuncture, as was demonstrated in this study, seems to be an effective means of reducing the symptoms and improving quality of life.

(Acupuncture for Dyspepsia in Pregnancy: A Prospective Randomised Controlled Study. Acupuncture in Medicine, June 2009.)

Researchers at Queen’s University and the University of Alberta in Canada, have investigated the effectiveness of acupuncture for assisting in the initiation and duration of labour.

Sixteen pregnant women at full term, were randomly assigned to receive acupuncture either at sites traditionally used to bring on labour, or at nearby sham sites. The results showed that women in the true acupuncture group on average went into labour 62 hours ahead of the sham group, and also experienced labours which were on average two hours and twenty minutes shorter. Patients reported that the experience of undergoing acupuncture provided them with a sense of control over the outcome of their pregnancy and that they enjoyed their interaction with the acupuncturists.

(Effectiveness of Acupuncture for the Initiation of Labour at Term: A Pilot Randomised Controlled Trial. Journal of Gynaecology & Obstetrics of Canada, December 2008.)

For breech presentation of a baby in the later stages of pregnancy, a common treatment from the acupuncturist’s stable of techniques, is to warm a specific acupuncture point on the foot, using a herb called moxa. The method is known as moxibustion, and if a case is suitable, I instruct a woman in how to do this herself or with her partner’s help.

A systematic review from Holland has compared the effects of such techniques, with normal management. Researchers looked at six randomised, controlled trials plus three cohort studies, and found that the proportion of breech presentations remaining after treatment averaged 28%, whereas in the control groups, it averaged 56%.

(Effectiveness of Acupuncture-type Interventions versus Expectant Management to correct Breech Presentation: a Systematic Review. Complementary Therapies in Medicine, April 2008.)

A review of three trials looking at the effectiveness of acupuncture for pelvic and back pain in pregnancy, has shown promising results. The authors examined two small trials on mixed back and pelvic pain, and one large, high-quality trial on pelvic pain. Acupuncture, as an adjunct to standard treatment, was superior to standard treatment alone and to physiotherapy in relieving mixed pelvic/back pain. Adverse events were few and only minor. The authors conclude that the limited evidence supports acupuncture use in treating pregnancy-related pelvic and back pain. Additional high-quality trials are needed to test the existing promising evidence for this relatively safe and popular complementary therapy.

(Acupuncture for pelvic and back pain in pregnancy: a systematic review. American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynaecology, March 2008.)