Publications by authors named "Sari Pelkonen"
Research Question: Is the growth of term singletons born after frozen embryo transfer (FET) comparable to those born after fresh embryo transfer and natural conception up to 5 years of age?
Design: Observational cohort study in an academic medical centre and municipal child health clinics with repeated measurements carried out by medical professionals. Term singletons born after FET (n = 110) and fresh embryo transfer (n = 181) and their matched natural conception controls (n = 543) born in Oulu, Northern Finland, were included. Mean weights, lengths, heights and head circumferences at the ages of 4, 8 and 18 months and 3 and 5 years were compared.
Study Question: Is it possible to define a set of performance indicators (PIs) for clinical work in ART, which can create competency profiles for clinicians and for specific clinical process steps?
Summary Answer: The current paper recommends six PIs to be used for monitoring clinical work in ovarian stimulation for ART, embryo transfer, and pregnancy achievement: cycle cancellation rate (before oocyte pick-up (OPU)) (%CCR), rate of cycles with moderate/severe ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS) (%mosOHSS), the proportion of mature (MII) oocytes at ICSI (%MII), complication rate after OPU (%CoOPU), clinical pregnancy rate (%CPR), and multiple pregnancy rate (%MPR).
What Is Known Already: PIs are objective measures for evaluating critical healthcare domains. In 2017, ART laboratory key PIs (KPIs) were defined.
Study Question: Are there differences in estrogen and progesterone secretion in singleton pregnancies, up to Week 11, between spontaneous pregnancies, after controlled ovarian hyperstimulation and fresh embryo transfer (COH + ET) and after frozen embryo transfer in a spontaneous cycle (FET)?
Summary Answer: Serum progesterone and estradiol (E2) concentrations after COH + ET were higher in early pregnancy, lasting up to Week 7-8, than FET and spontaneous pregnancies, while hormone levels after FET did not differ from spontaneous pregnancies.
What Is Already Known: The risk of adverse perinatal outcomes after COH + ET seems to be increased when compared with spontaneous pregnancies. One of the reasons suggested for this is related to ovarian hyperstimulation.