If you would like to add an entry to this part of our site, please contact us.	News & Events News Releases Acupuncture for labour induction Fifty-six primigravid women at 39 weeks or greater with a singleton gestation and Bishop score (a system for predicting whether induction of labour will be required) of less than seven were randomised to usual medical care or usual care plus three acupuncture treatments. Each treatment consisted of eight needles applied bilaterally to Hegu L.I.-4, Sanyinjiao SP-6, Shangliao BL-31 and Ciliao BL-32. Mean time from randomisation to delivery occurred 21 hours sooner in the acupuncture group, but this difference did not reach statistical significance. Compared with controls, women in the acupuncture group tended to be more likely to labour spontaneously and less likely to deliver by Caesarean section. (A randomized controlled trial of acupuncture for initiation of labor in nulliparous women. J Matern Fetal Neonatal Med. 2006 Aug;19(8):465-70) Acupuncture significantly reduces duration of labour and reduces the need for augmentation of labour with contraction-stimulating drugs. A study randomised 100 women with spontaneous rupture of membranes at term to either acupuncture or no acupuncture. Treatment was individualised on the basis of traditional Chinese medical diagnosis and used three points per patient from a pool of nine possible choices. Treatment principles applied were to increase energy, soften the cervix and open the Conception vessel. Although time from membrane rupture to delivery did not differ significantly between the groups, length of active labour was significantly reduced in the acupuncture group by a mean difference of 1.7 hours. In addition, significantly fewer patients in the acupuncture group required oxytocin (used to stimulate contractions) for longer than two hours. Medical induction of labour was eventually necessary in 15 acupuncture patients and 20 controls. When induction was carried out, women assigned to acupuncture completed the active phase of labour in half the time compared to controls, a statistically significant difference. (Acupuncture administered after spontaneous rupture of membranes at term significantly reduces the length of birth and use of oxytocin. A randomized controlled trial. Acta Obstet Gynecol Scand. 2006;85(11):1348-53).