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Background Ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS) is a serious and potentially fatal complication of ovarian stimulation, which affects 1% to 14% of all in vitro fertilisation (IVF) or intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) cycles. A number of clinical studies with conflicting results have reported on the use of intravenous fluids such as albumin, hydroxyethyl starch, Haemaccel (R) and dextran as a possible way for preventing the severe form of OHSS. Objectives To review the effectiveness and safety of administration of intravenous fluids such as albumin, hydroxyethyl starch, Haemaccel (R) and dextran in the prevention of severe ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS) in IVF or ICSI treatment cycles. Search strategy We searched the Cochrane Menstrual Disorders and Subfertility Group Specialised Register of controlled trials, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) (The Cochrane Library, to third quarter 2010), MEDLINE (1950 to November 2010), EMBASE (1980 to November 2010) and The National Research Register (toNovember 2010). The citation lists of relevant publications, review articles, abstracts of scientific meetings and included studies were also searched. The authors were contacted to provide or clarify data that were unclear from the trial reports. Selection criteria Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) which compared the effects of intravenous fluids with placebo or no treatment for the prevention of severe OHSS in high risk women undergoing IVF or ICSI treatment cycles. Data collection and analysis Two review authors independently scanned the abstracts, identified relevant papers, assessed inclusion of trials and trial quality and extracted relevant data. Validity was assessed in terms of method of randomisation, allocation concealment and outcomes. Where possible, data were pooled for analysis. A separate analysis of studies was performed for human albumin and hydroxyethyl starch versus placebo or no treatment. Other potential intravenous fluids have been identified, such as Haemaccel and dextran, however no randomised controlled studies on their applicability could be found. Main results Nine RCTs involving 1660 (human albumin vs placebo) and 487 (HES vs placebo) randomised women, have been included in this review. There was a borderline statistically significant decrease in the incidence of severe OHSS with administration of human albumin (8 RCTs, OR 0.67, 95% CI 0.45 to 0.99). There was a statistically significant decrease in severe OHSS incidence with administration of hydroxyethyl starch (3 RCTs, OR 0.12, 95% CI 0.04 to 0.40). There was no evidence of statistical difference in the pregnancy rate between both groups of treatment. Authors' conclusions There is limited evidence of benefit from intra-venous albumin administration at the time of oocyte retrieval in the prevention or reduction of the incidence of severeOHSS in high risk women undergoing IVF or ICSI treatment cycles. Hydroxyethyl starchmarkedly decreases the incidence of severe OHSS.