Inter- and Intra-Observer Agreement Between Embryologists for Cytoplasmic String Assessment in Day 5/6 Human Blastocysts.

To investigate inter- and intra-observer agreement in the assessment of cytoplasmic string (CS) by embryologists on day 5/6 human blastocysts using the EmbryoViewer software. This was a prospective study involving five embryologists working between 2019 and 2020. Inter-observer agreement was calculated using assessments performed on 104 day 5/6 blastocysts regarding the presence, number, and location of CS and CS vesicle activity using timelapse videos.

Detailed analysis of cytoplasmic strings in human blastocysts: new insights.

The aim of this study was to determine if there was an association between the presence of cytoplasmic strings (CS) and their characteristics, with blastocyst quality, development and clinical outcome in human blastocysts. This two-centre cohort study was performed between July 2017 and September 2018 and involved a total of 1152 blastocysts from 225 patients undergoing fertilization (IVF) and intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI). All embryos were cultured in Embryoscope+ and were assessed for CS using time-lapse images.

The presence of cytoplasmic strings in human blastocysts is associated with the probability of clinical pregnancy with fetal heart.

Purpose: Is the presence of cytoplasmic strings (CS) in human blastocysts associated with the probability of clinical pregnancy with fetal heart (CPFH) after transfer.

Methods: This case-control study involved 300 single blastocyst transfers. 150 of these resulted in a CPFH (cases) while 150 did not (controls).

Is early embryo development as observed by time-lapse microscopy dependent on whether fresh or frozen sperm was used for ICSI? A cohort study.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to compare timings of key events of embryo development from those originating from either fresh or cryopreserved ejaculate sperm using time-lapse technology.

Methods: In this retrospective observational cohort study, time-lapse technology was used to monitor 1927 embryos from 234 women undergoing intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) and utilizing either fresh (n = 172 cycles) or cryopreserved ejaculate sperm (n = 62 cycles) for insemination were included in the study. Key developmental events as described in time-lapse were compared with the use of generalized estimating equations (GEE) to adjust for any auto-correlation between the observations.