A Traditional Literature Review on Acupuncture and Moxibustion during Pregnancy

Objectives : A safety issue on acupuncture and moxibustion treatment during pregnancy is as important as effectiveness. To establish a rationale and research strategy for future studies, a traditional literature review was performed to summarize how and for what conditions acupuncture and moxibustion treatment was given during pregnancy. Methods : An extensive traditional literature search for acupuncture and moxibustion treatment during pregnancy was conducted in texts on acupuncture and moxibustion, obstetrics and gynecology, and comprehensive medical texts. Treatment conditions, methods, and contraindications were summarized and tabulated. Results : Twenty-eight books were included in our review. Most frequent description of acupuncture and moxibustion treatment use during pregnancy was for difficult delivery including breech presentations; commonly used acupuncture points for difficult labor included LI4, SP6, BL67, BL60, KI6, ST30, SP12, LR4, LR3, PC6, CV3, CV14, KI13, and GB21, indicating that they may have to be avoided during pregnancy. Descriptions of other symptoms or conditions were sparse. For habitual abortion or recurrent miscarriage, moxibustion on GV4, BL23, CV3, KI8, and KI2 was indicated. A combination of LI4 and SP6, and CV4 were contraindicated during pregnancy consistently across the reviewed books. Conclusions : Our traditional literature review has shown that the use of acupuncture and moxibustion treatment during pregnancy has been limited. Given that more and more pregnant women are interested in safe and effective treatment, further research of acupuncture's safety and efficacy during pregnancy is urgently needed.

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