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Background Progesterone (P4) plays a critical role in a natural menstrual cycle. It is an essential hormone to have successful embryo implantation into the endometrium. Objective In the current study, we compared the clinical outcomes of patients with different levels of P4 on embryo transfer day and aimed to determine the optimum threshold for P4 in the luteal phase. Material and methods We performed a prospective cohort study on 100 patients who were referred to the Taleqani Infertility Treatment Institute to undergo frozen embryo transfer (FET). Endometrial preparation was programmed using an estrogen (E2) and progesterone supplement. FET was carried out 3 days after administration of the first dosage of progesterone. We measured serum progesterone levels on embryo transfer day. Clinical pregnancy was the main investigated outcome. We used a parametric receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) to determine the best-cut points of P4 on embryo transfer day. Results Overall, the average endometrial thickness was 7.9 ± 0.2 mm. We observed no association between endometrial thickness and clinical pregnancy (P value = 0.719). The mean number of the transferred embryos in all investigated cycles was 1.5 ± 0.5, and 80.0% of the transferred embryos were high quality (high and medium level). The average progesterone level in cycles with clinical pregnancy was 17.2 ± 3.3 ng/mL. It was only 13.4 ± 9.4 in patients without clinical pregnancy. The observed difference was statistically significant (P value = 0.032). The estimated AUC for the drawn ROC curve was 0.71 indicating a high predictive value. Conclusion The current study demonstrated that high and low serum progesterone (P4) levels on embryo transfer day were associated with reduced clinical outcomes following blastocyst transfer during IVF/ICSI. However, more studies with large sizes are required in this regard. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Repeated implantation failure is a major challenge in reproductive medicine and despite several methods that have been described for management, there is little consensus on which is the most effective. This study was conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of autologous platelet-rich plasma in improving the pregnancy rate in repeated implantation failure. Between 2016 and 2017, a total of 138 patients who failed to conceive after 3 or more embryo transfers with high quality embryos and candidate for frozen-thawed embryo transfer were assessed for eligibility to enter the study. Intrauterine infusion of 0.5 ml platelet-rich plasma (PRP) that contained platelets at 4–5 times higher concentration than peripheral blood was performed 48 h before blastocyst transfer. A control group received standard treatment. Ninety-seven patients completed the study procedure. There were no significant differences between the two groups in terms of age, body mass index and number of previous embryo transfers. The chemical pregnancy rate was higher in the PRP group than control group (53.06% versus 27.08%, respectively; p value: 0.009). Clinical pregnancy rate was higher in PRP group than control group (44.89% versus 16.66%, respectively; p value: 0.003). In conclusion, intrauterine platelet-rich plasma may be effective in the improvement of pregnancy outcome in repeated implantation failure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Adequate endometrial growth is principal for implantation and pregnancy. Thin endometrium is associated with lower pregnancy rate in assisted reproductive technology. Some frozen-thawed embryo transfer cycles are cancelled due to inadequate endometrial growth. Objective: To assess the effectiveness of autologous platelet-rich plasma (PRP) intrauterine infusion for the treatment of thin endometrium. Materials and Methods: A total of 72 patients who had a history of cancelled frozenthawed embryo transfer cycle due to the thin endometrium (< 7mm) were assessed for the eligibility to enter the study between 2016 and 2017. Twelve patients were excluded for different reasons, and 60 included patients were randomly assigned to PRP or sham-catheter groups in a double-blind manner. Hormone replacement therapy was administered for endometrial preparation in all participants. PRP intrauterine infusion or shamcatheter was performed on day 11-12 due to the thin endometrium and it was repeated after 48 hr if necessary. Results: Endometrial thickness increased at 48 hr after the first intervention in both groups. All participants needed second intervention due to an inadequate endometrial expansion. After second intervention, endometrial thickness was 7.21 ± 0.18 and 5.76 ± 0.97 mm in the PRP group and sham-catheter group, respectively. There was a significant difference between the two groups. (p < 0.001). Embryo transfer was done for all patients in PRP group and just in six cases in the sham-catheter group. Chemical pregnancy was reported in twelve cases in the PRP group and two cases in the shamcatheter group. Conclusion: According to this trial, PRP was effective in endometrial expansion in patients with refractory thin endometrium. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Repeated implantation failure (RIF) is a major challenge in reproductive medicine and despite several methods that have been described for management, there is little consensus on the most effective one. Objective: This study was conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of platelet-rich plasma in improvement of pregnancy rate in RIF patients. Materials and Methods: Twenty women with a history of RIF who were candidates for frozen-thawed embryo transfer were recruited in this study. Intrauterine infusion of 0.5 ml of platelet-rich plasma that contained platelet 4-5 times more than peripheral blood sample was performed 48 hrs before blastocyst transfer. Results: Eighteen participants were pregnant with one early miscarriage and one molar pregnancy. Sixteen clinical pregnancies were recorded and their pregnancies are ongoing. Conclusion: According to this study, it seems that platelet-rich plasma is effective in improvement of pregnancy outcome in RIF patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Recurrent implantation failure is one of the most issues in IVF cycles. Some researchers found that beneficial effects of endometrial Scratching in women with recurrent implantation failure, while some authors demonstrated contrary results. Objective: The present study aimed to investigate the effect of intrauterine. Saline infusion as a form of endometrial injury, during fresh in vitro fertilization-embryo transfer cycle, among patients with recurrent implantation failure. Materials and Methods: In this clinical trial study 63 women undergoing assisted reproductive technology were divided into two groups either local endometrial injury by intrauterine saline infusion during day 3-5 of the ongoing controlled ovarian stimulation cycle, or IVF protocol performed without any other intervention in Taleghani Hospital, Tehran, Iran. The main outcome measure was clinical pregnancy rates. Results: Patients who received intra uterine saline infusion (n=20), had significantly lower clinical pregnancy numbers (1 vs. 9, p<0.05) and implantation rates (4.7% vs. 41.6%, p<0.05), compared to controls (n=39). However, there was no significant difference in miscarriage rates (9.4% vs. 8.7%, p>0.05) and multiple pregnancy numbers (1 vs. 3, p>0.05) between groups. Conclusion: When intrauterine saline infusion as a form of endometrial injury is performed during the ongoing IVF cycles it has negative effect on reproductive outcomes among patients with recurrent implantation failure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Background: Embryo transfer (ET) is one of the most important steps in assisted reproductive technology (ART) cycles and affected by many factors namely the depth of embryo deposition in uterus. In this study, the outcomes of intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) cycles after blind embryo transfer and embryo transfer based on previously measured uterine length using vaginal ultrasound were compared. Materials and Methods: This prospective randomised clinical trial included one hundred and forty non-donor fresh embryo transfers during January 2010 to June 2011. In group I, ET was performed using conventional (blind) method at 5-6cm from the external os, and in group II, ET was done at a depth of 1-1.5 cm from the uterine fundus based on previously measured uterine length using vaginal sonography. Appropriate statistical analysis was performed using Student’s t test and Chi-square or Fisher’s exact test. The software that we used was PASW statistics version 18. A p value <0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: Chemical pregnancy rate was 28.7% in group I and 42.1% in group II, while the difference was not statistically significant (p=0.105). Clinical pregnancy, ongoing pregnancy and implantation rates for group I were 21.2%, 17.7%, and 12.8%, while for group II were 33.9%, 33.9%, and 22.1, respectively. In group I and group II, abortion rates were 34.7% and 0%, respectively, indicating a statistically significant difference (p<0.005). No ectopic pregnancy occurred in two groups. Conclusion: The use of uterine length measurement during treatment cycle in order to place embryos at depth of 1-1.5cm from fundus significantly increases clinical and ongoing pregnancy and implantation rates, while leads to a decrease in abortion rate (Registration Number: IRCT2014032512494N1). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]