Objective: The variability in ultrasound-based antral follicle counts sized 2-10 mm after allowing for age-related decline is considerable. This may represent differences in actual reproductive age among women. This hypothesis was tested by cohort comparison for distribution of age at occurrence of reproductive events.
Design: A model with a nonlinear mean decline with age was fitted to antral follicle counts (AFC) obtained in 163 regularly cycling fertile volunteers. Ages at last child birth and menopause were predicted from the individual AFC by using thresholds to represent these events and the model for decline with age. Distributions of the observed ages at last childbirth (proxy variable for loss of natural fertility) and ages at menopause were obtained from the BALSAC demographic database and the Prospect-EPIC study, respectively. The observed distributions were compared with the predicted distributions by using visual comparison and quantile-quantile plots. Predictions of age at last child and age at menopause were done using percentiles of the modeled AFC distribution for given age, and corresponding percentiles of the predicted distributions of age at these reproductive events, with predictions following from the position of a woman's AFC relative to these percentiles.
Results: The predicted distributions of age at last child and age at menopause showed good agreement with the observed distributions in the BALSAC and EPIC cohort. Compared with age alone, antral follicle counts gave some additional information for individual prediction of age at last child and menopause.
Conclusions: The link between declining antral follicle counts and reproductively significant events like loss of natural fertility and menopause is strengthened by the high degree of similarity among the predicted and observed age distributions. Predictive usefulness of this relationship in a clinical setting may be more marginal, except in the case of women who have low AFCs for their age.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1097/01.gme.0000123643.76105.27 | DOI Listing |
Adv Anat Embryol Cell Biol
January 2025
Laboratory of Molecular Morphophysiology and Development, Department of Veterinary Medicine, School of Animal Science and Food Engineering, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil.
In this chapter, we explore the multifaceted roles of extracellular vesicles (EVs) in ovarian biology, focusing on their contributions to folliculogenesis, oocyte competence, corpus luteum function, and immune response regulation. EVs, particularly those derived from follicular fluid (ffEVs), are crucial mediators of cell-to-cell communication within the ovarian follicle, influencing processes such as meiotic progression, stress response, and hormonal regulation. We review preexisting literature, highlighting key findings on the molecular cargo of EVs, such as miRNAs and proteins, and their involvement in regulating the function of the follicle cells.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSci Rep
December 2024
INRAE, CNRS, Université de Tours, PRC, Nouzilly, 37380, France.
Ovaries are of paramount importance in reproduction as they produce female gametes through a complex developmental process known as folliculogenesis. In the prospect of better understanding the mechanisms of folliculogenesis and of developing novel pharmacological approaches to control it, it is important to accurately and quantitatively assess the later stages of ovarian folliculogenesis (i.e.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFOpen Vet J
November 2024
Theriogenology Department, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Cairo University, Giza, Egypt.
Background: Senility influences fertility in women and companion animals, especially horses.
Aim: This study aimed to investigate the effect of aging in horses on the daily changes in the dominant follicle (DF) dynamics and hemodynamics, antimüllerian hormone (AMH), enzymes, antioxidants, and ovarian hormones during the estrous cycle.
Methods: Ovaries of old mares ( = 5, age >20 years) and young native mares ( = 6, age <10 years) were scanned during 6 different estrous cycles from March 2022 to August 2023 with Doppler ultrasound.
Front Endocrinol (Lausanne)
December 2024
Taiwan United Birth-Promoting Experts Fertility Clinic, Tainan, Taiwan.
Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the correlation of ovarian sensitivity index (OSI) and clinical parameters in IVF treatments.
Methods: IVF data files between January 2011 and December 2020 in a single unit were included. The primary outcome measure was the correlation between the OSI and clinical pregnancy and live birth rates.
Cureus
November 2024
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Fertility Institute, Assisted Reproduction Unit, Athens, GRC.
The study focuses on spontaneous conception after menopause in a woman with primary ovarian insufficiency (POI), with an emphasis on the role of anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) in fertility management. This case involves a 33-year-old woman with POI who has experienced both aided and spontaneous pregnancies. She had low AMH and high follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) levels, which typically indicate a limited ovarian reserve.
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