Timed intercourse for couples trying to conceive.

Background: Many factors influence fertility, one being the timing of intercourse. The 'fertile window' describes a stage in the cycle when conception can occur and is approximately five days before to several hours after ovulation. 'Timed intercourse' is the practice of prospectively identifying ovulation and, thus, the fertile window to increase the likelihood of conception.

Obesity is associated with heavy menstruation that may be due to delayed endometrial repair.

Heavy menstrual bleeding is common and debilitating but the causes remain ill defined. Rates of obesity in women are increasing and its impact on menstrual blood loss (MBL) is unknown. Therefore, we quantified BMI and MBL in women not taking hormones and with regular menstrual cycles and revealed a positive correlation.

HYPOXIA AND REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH: The presence and role of hypoxia in the endometrium.

The endometrium is a multicellular tissue that is exquisitely responsive to the ovarian hormones. The local mechanisms of endometrial regulation to ensure optimal function are less well characterised. Transient physiological hypoxia has been proposed as a critical regulator of endometrial function.

Human chorionic gonadotrophin priming for fertility treatment with in vitro maturation.

Background: In vitro maturation (IVM) is a fertility treatment that involves the transvaginal retrieval of immature oocytes, and their subsequent maturation and fertilisation. Although the live birth rate is lower than conventional in vitro fertilisation (IVF) with ovarian stimulation, it is a useful treatment, as it avoids the risk of ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS). Women with polycystic ovaries (PCO) or polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) are at an increased risk of OHSS.