products tabs
Please note this course is no longer approved for California acupuncture CEUs.
If you need live California acupuncture CEUs, check out our upcoming live webinars and for on-demand distance courses approved by California, please visit our CAB approval page.
We chose not to renew this course for California Acupuncture CEUs. However, this course is approved by other CEU regulatory bodies. Please check our approved by tab for approval details.
Description
Acupuncture is a popular treatment for many people undergoing, or planning on undergoing, IVF or assisted reproduction. Some recent systematic reviews/meta-analysis have suggested that acupuncture may not be effective in improving pregnancy rates and live births.
To assist with being able to understand why systematic reviews and meta-analysis come to different conclusions we will also cover an introduction on what happens during a systematic review, why and how we do a meta-analysis and how to interpret the results.
This seminar will focus on the results of recent research and explore why the ‘dose’ of acupuncture is a key factor in determining the effectiveness of acupuncture treatment in improving pregnancy-related outcomes.
- How systematic reviews are conducted, and how meta-analysis are undertaken
- Reviewing the recent literature (last 3 years of systematic reviews) and discussing why there are differences between the results of these
- Discussing the different components of acupuncture treatment and how these impact fertility outcomes
Course Outline:
- Understand how a systematic review is conducted
- Be able to identify the strengths and weaknesses of a systematic review
- Understand what happens during a meta-analysis and how to interpret the outcomes
- Identify different components of an acupuncture ‘dose’ and how these contribute to fertility outcomes
- Determine clinically relevant treatment guidelines for IVF patients based on the latest research
Dr Mike Armour PhD, BHSc BSc (Hons)
Postdoctoral Senior Research Fellow, Clinical Research, NICM Health Research Institute
Dr Armour joined NICM in 2016 as a postdoctoral research fellow working in the area of women's health. His background is a mixture of western and eastern medicine, having completed an honours degree in Biomedicine before training as a traditional Chinese medicine practitioner.
In 2016, under the supervision of Professor Caroline Smith, Professor Hannah Dahlen, Dr Xiaoshu Zhu and Professor Cindy Faruqhar, Dr Armour completed his PhD examining the effect of acupuncture on the treatment of primary dysmenorrhea at NICM.
He started his research career in 2001, as a summer scholar working on cardiovascular biophysics at the Faculty of Medicine in Auckland, New Zealand. While studying acupuncture Dr Armour then worked as a research assistant serving the largest district health board population in the New Zealand at the Waitemata District Health Board, being involved in a range of health related research, with a specific focus on complementary and integrative medicine. He tutored at the Faculty of Medicine for several years, and more recently at the NZ School of Acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine from 2010-2016, specialising in research methodology. Dr Armour also ran a busy clinical practice at The Body Workshop, specialising in women's health.
His research areas include gynaecology, pregnancy and fertility, and traditional Chinese medicine. He is experienced in implementing research projects across international borders and has a specific interest in dysmenorrhea and chronic pelvic pain.
