A pen injection device for self-administration of recombinant follicle-stimulating hormone for fertility treatments.

A pen injection device modeled on the insulin pen used by diabetic patients has been introduced to deliver recombinant follicle-stimulating hormone to women undergoing controlled ovarian stimulation for in vitro fertilization or other forms of assisted reproductive technology. The pen device makes it easier and less painful for women to self-administer daily injections. The high precision and accuracy of the device enables physicians to fine-tune dosage.

Use of follicle-stimulating hormone for the treatment of female infertility - current concepts.

Ovulatory dysfunction, which is common among women of reproductive age, often results in infertility. Over the last three decades, follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), in the form of either urinary human menopausal gonadotropin or highly purified urinary FSH (uFSH), has been the mainstay in the treatment of women with ovulatory dysfunction. However, these preparations have several disadvantages, including variable composition, contamination with urinary proteins, and the limited availability of human menopausal urine from which uFSH is extracted.

Administration of recombinant human FSH (solution in cartridge) with a pen device in women undergoing ovarian stimulation.

This study evaluated the first multiple-use pen device for the self-administration of recombinant FSH. The pen device is used for the subcutaneous injection of a pre-mixed ready-to-use solution of follitropin beta from a multiple-dose cartridge, and has flexible dosing capabilities. In the ease-of-use questionnaire, 90% of subjects rated the overall experience of self-injecting follitropin beta using the pen device as 'very good' (on day 6).

Probabilities for singleton and multiple pregnancies after in vitro fertilization.

Objective: To help physicians provide risk estimates for specific pregnancy outcomes.

Design: Computation of exact binomial probabilities for singleton and multiple pregnancies as a function of two inputs: the number of embryos transferred and the implantation rate. Inputs were varied over the range of values reported in the literature.

Successful pregnancies with the use of laminaria tents before embryo transfer for refractory cervical stenosis.

Objective: To determine whether laminaria tents are a safe and effective method of cervical dilatation in patients with a history of cervical stenosis and difficult ET.

Design: Case reports describing two patients.

Setting: Tertiary care, assisted reproduction practice.