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Acupuncture to coax labor not so useful
Source: Agencies |
July 28, 2010, Wednesday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
ALTHOUGH acupuncture is promoted as a way to induce labor in women who go past their due date, a Danish study had added to evidence casting doubt on its usefulness.
Researchers from Aarhus University Hospital found that among 125 pregnant women who were past their due dates, those who were randomly assigned to undergo two acupuncture sessions were no more likely to go into labor over the next 24 hours.
Of those women, 12 percent went into labor, versus 14 percent of those who were randomly assigned to have a "sham" version of acupuncture and there were no differences in other outcomes such as dilation of the cervix or the length of time it took to deliver.
"The results are very clear," said Dr Niels Uldbjerg, professor of obstetrics and gynecology. "Acupuncture as used in this trial does not induce labor in post-term pregnant women."
However Uldbjerg and his colleagues acknowledged a "more intensive" course of acupuncture could arguably have produced different results and noted many acupuncturists say the therapy must be individualized from person to person.
But the findings, reported in the obstetrics journal BJOG, add to evidence that acupuncture may not be an effective way to induce labor in "post- term" pregnancies - those that go beyond 41 weeks.
About five percent to 10 percent of pregnant women have a post-term pregnancy, a delay that raises the risk of complications during labor. Because of this, doctors routinely induce labor when a pregnancy lasts beyond 41 weeks.
Acupuncture has been used for more than 2,000 years in Chinese medicine to treat a wide variety of ailments. According to traditional medicine, specific acupuncture points on the skin are connected to internal pathways that conduct energy, or qi, and stimulating these points with a fine needle promotes the healthy flow of qi.
Researchers from Aarhus University Hospital found that among 125 pregnant women who were past their due dates, those who were randomly assigned to undergo two acupuncture sessions were no more likely to go into labor over the next 24 hours.
Of those women, 12 percent went into labor, versus 14 percent of those who were randomly assigned to have a "sham" version of acupuncture and there were no differences in other outcomes such as dilation of the cervix or the length of time it took to deliver.
"The results are very clear," said Dr Niels Uldbjerg, professor of obstetrics and gynecology. "Acupuncture as used in this trial does not induce labor in post-term pregnant women."
However Uldbjerg and his colleagues acknowledged a "more intensive" course of acupuncture could arguably have produced different results and noted many acupuncturists say the therapy must be individualized from person to person.
But the findings, reported in the obstetrics journal BJOG, add to evidence that acupuncture may not be an effective way to induce labor in "post- term" pregnancies - those that go beyond 41 weeks.
About five percent to 10 percent of pregnant women have a post-term pregnancy, a delay that raises the risk of complications during labor. Because of this, doctors routinely induce labor when a pregnancy lasts beyond 41 weeks.
Acupuncture has been used for more than 2,000 years in Chinese medicine to treat a wide variety of ailments. According to traditional medicine, specific acupuncture points on the skin are connected to internal pathways that conduct energy, or qi, and stimulating these points with a fine needle promotes the healthy flow of qi.
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