The primary objective of the present review was to determine what pain-relieving effect had been reported for acupuncture and other conscious sedation methods in assisted reproduction therapy since 1990. The data source was the Medline database of the National Library of Medicine covering the period January 1990 to January 2004. Bibliographies of relevant publications and review articles were scanned. A systematic review and meta-analyses of RCTs comparing the pain-relieving effect of acupuncture and other conscious sedation methods was carried out. Of the 30 trials identified, 12 met the selection criteria. Five of the 12 studies reported differences in pain experiences during oocyte aspiration, but it was only possible to group the three trials evaluating the effect of electro-acupuncture. The outcomes of these three studies were homogeneous except from maximal and average pain.