What is the effect of manual therapy on the management of female infertility and related syndromes?
Item
- Title
- What is the effect of manual therapy on the management of female infertility and related syndromes?
- Author(s)
- Le Bidan, M
- Abstract
- Background: Infertility is a failure to achieve clinical pregnancy. It is mainly managed by allopathic or surgical treatments, and more recently by Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART). Nonetheless these therapies have a low success rate and can cause various side effects. Because of these reasons and the economic pressure, couples tend to turn to complementary therapies, offering a different approach. Yet, the research supporting their beneficial use remains poor. Objective: To investigate the effect of manual therapy (MT) in the management of female infertility and associated syndromes. Design: Structured literature review. Methods: A systematic search of Google Scholar, PubMed, Cochrane library and Science direct databases was conducted. All study designs using acupuncture, osteopathy, chiropractic-care, manual physical therapy (MPT) and reflexology were eligible. The primary outcomes overviewed were clinical pregnancy rates (CPR), ovulation-related effects, live birth rates (LBR), implantation rates (IR), pelvic-adhesions (including tubal patency) and anxiety levels. The PEDro and SORT scales allowed the assessment of the studies’ methodological quality and their level of evidence and recommendation respectively. The main studies’ characteristics were summarized, and the mean effects of each intervention-type were compared. Results: 25 articles were included. 72% were Randomized Controlled Trials and most were acupuncture-related (64%). The mean PEDro score was 8/10 and the most recurrent SORT score was 1B. CPR was improved at 54.25%, Ovulation rates at 76%, LBR at 48.78%, IR at 33.41%, tubal patency at 60.85% and anxiety levels up to 68.20%. Most significant results came from acupuncture studies, but none were from chiropractic care, soft tissue mobilisation and reflexology. Discussion: As per the published literature, some MT found to be beneficial in the management of infertility, but mixed results were also encountered. Despite the overall good methodological quality, level of evidence and recommendation, the heterogeneity in study designs and procedures biased the results withdrawn from the studies’ comparison. Conclusion: Positive effects of MT on the management of infertility with good level of recommendation were highlighted. Nonetheless the current evidence is inadequate and further rigorous high-quality studies are needed to draw any firm conclusions.
- presented at
- European School of Osteopathy
- Date Accepted
- 2020
- Date Submitted
- 28.10.2020 18:08:19
- Type
- osteo_thesis
- Language
- English
- Submitted by:
- 62
- Pub-Identifier
- 16671
- Inst-Identifier
- 1229
- Keywords
- Female infertility, In-vitro Fertilization, Manual Therapies, Systematic review
- Recommended
- 0
- Item sets
- Thesis
Le Bidan, M, “What is the effect of manual therapy on the management of female infertility and related syndromes?”, Osteopathic Research Web, accessed May 5, 2025, https://www.osteopathicresearch.org/s/orw/item/184