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. 2020 Dec 8:2020:3951741.
doi: 10.1155/2020/3951741. eCollection 2020.

Traditional Chinese Medicine Treatment Associated with Female Infertility in Taiwan: A Population-Based Case-Control Study

Yueh-Hsiang Liao  1   2 , Jaung-Geng Lin  2 , Cheng-Chieh Lin  3   4 , Chin-Chuan Tsai  1 , Hui-Lien Lai  5 , Tsai-Chung Li  6   7
Affiliations

Traditional Chinese Medicine Treatment Associated with Female Infertility in Taiwan: A Population-Based Case-Control Study

Yueh-Hsiang Liao et al. Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. .

Abstract

Background: Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) for the treatment of female infertility remains ambiguous. The aim of the present case-control study was to examine the association between TCM treatment and successful pregnancy among infertile women.

Methods: This population-based case-control study included the data from 2,627 infertile women with successful pregnancy and 2,627 infertile women without successful pregnancy using datasets from the Longitudinal Health Insurance Database 2000 of the National Health Insurance Research Database during 2000-2010. The odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for the relationship between TCM use and successful pregnancy in infertility women were estimated using logistic regression.

Results: Patients who received TCM treatment significantly increased in successful pregnancy (OR = 1.48; 95% CI = 1.31-1.66), compared with patients without TCM. Si-Wu-Tang (OR = 4.25; 95% CI = 2.18, 8.30), Gui-Zhi-Fu-Ling-Wan (OR = 3.27; 95% CI = 2.13, 5.02), and Jia-Wei-Xiao-Yao-San (OR = 3.17; 95% CI = 2.35, 4.28) were the TCM agents that were most strongly associated with successful pregnancy among infertile women.

Conclusions: Our study findings indicate that TCM is associated with higher likelihood of successful pregnancy in infertile women, which is worthy of further investigation by randomized control trial.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Flowchart of recruitment procedures for the current study.
Figure 2
Figure 2
The odds ratios of pregnancy stratified by polycystic ovary syndrome, endometriosis, irregular menstrual cycle, uterine fibroids, and dysmenorrhea.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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