The changing pattern of uterine contractions before and after fresh embryo transfer and its relation to clinical outcome.

In this prospective cohort study of 286 women undergoing fresh embryo transfer after IVF, uterine contraction frequency and direction were measured before (-5 min), 5 min after (+5 min) and 60 min after (+60 min) embryo transfer. Mean ± SD uterine contraction frequency at -5 min was 1.8 ± 1.

Assessment of the embryo flash position and migration with 3D ultrasound within 60 min of embryo transfer.

Study Question: Does the air bubble (embryo flash) position and migration as visualized with 3D ultrasound (US) within 60 min of embryo transfer correlate with clinical outcome following fresh ART transfer cycles?

Summary Answer: The location of the embryo flash and the direction of its movement at 60 min, but not at 1 or 5 min after transfer, are associated with clinical pregnancy.

What Is Known Already: Studies assessing the relation between the pregnancy rate and the position of the catheter tip and/or the position of the air bubbles following embryo transfer show conflicting results to date.

Study Design, Size And Duration: This was a prospective cohort study including 277 infertile women undergoing ART between July 2011 and August 2013.

Do uterine natural killer cell numbers in peri-implantation endometrium predict hypertensive disorder in pregnancy in women with a history of reproductive failure?

The aim of this study was to investigate whether or not increased uterine natural killer (uNK) cell numbers in the peri-implantation endometrium are associated with an increased risk of hypertensive disorders in a subsequent pregnancy. This is a retrospective study including 80 women with a history of unexplained recurrent miscarriage or recurrent implantation failure. Precisely timed endometrial biopsies were obtained from women 7-9 days after the luteinising hormone surge.

Vascular endothelial growth factor C is increased in endometrium and promotes endothelial functions, vascular permeability and angiogenesis and growth of endometriosis.

Endometriosis is an angiogenesis-dependent disease. Many studies demonstrated inhibition of angiogenesis leads to inhibition of endometriotic growth, however underlying mechanism is still not fully understood. Our previous study suggested vascular endothelial growth factor C (VEGF-C) as a target of anti-angiogenesis therapy for endometriosis.