Background and Aims: The rapidly graying population in Japan is being compounded by the rapidly-dropping birth rate. The latter is mostly due to the later ages at which women are giving birth as the marriage age has also been increasing. Giving birth at a later stage is associated with problems for both mother and child, but for older would-be mothers the greatest problem is infertility, sometimes severe. The present article will show how the application of low level laser therapy (LLLT) is a potentially effective treatment for severe infertility.
Subjects and Methods: Seventy-four females (average age 39.28 yr) with severe infertility in whom assisted reproductive technology (ART) had been unsuccessful (average of 9.13 yr) participated in the first part of a study from October 1996 . April 2000. LLLT was applied (830 nm, CW, GaAlAs 60 mW diode LLLT) in Ohshiro’s proximal priority technique (average 21.08 sessions) with or without other ART approaches. Based on successful outcomes, the study was then extended to March 2012, amassing a final total of 701 patients.
Results: Pregnancy was achieved in the first part of the trial in 16 patients (21.7% of 74) of whom 11 (68%) achieved successful live delivery. In the extended trial, pregnancy was achieved in 156 (22.3% of 701) with 79 live deliveries (50.1%).
Conclusions: The use of 830 nm LLLT in the proximal priority technique at the parameters used in the present study, on its own or as an adjunct to other techniques, resulted in successful induction of pregnancy in just over 21% of severely infertile females, with a substantial number of these achieving live births. No adverse events were noted in any patient. LLLT is a pain-free and sideeffect free modality which could give hope to the increasing numbers of older females with infertility in Japan and potentially worldwide. Multinational studies are warranted.