The Impact of Pituitary Blockage with GnRH Antagonist and Gonadotrophin Stimulation Length on The Outcome of ICSI Cycles in Women Older than 36 Years.

Background: The objective of this retrospective cohort study was to evaluate whether the length of pituitary blockage with gonadotrophin-releasing hormone (GnRH) antagonists or the stimulation period influence intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) outcomes in patients older than 36 years of age.

Materials And Methods: In this retrospective study, a total of 138 couples with maternal age >36 years undergoing ICSI with an antagonist protocol were included. The influences of stimulation and suppression length on the response to ovarian stimulation and ICSI outcomes were investigated.

Prediction of embryo implantation potential by mass spectrometry fingerprinting of the culture medium.

This study has evaluated the performance of a multivariate statistical model to predict embryo implantation potential by processing data from the chemical fingerprinting of culture medium samples used for human embryo culture. The culture medium for 113 embryos from 55 patients undergoing ICSI was collected after embryo transfer. The samples were split into positive (n=29) and negative (n=84) implantation groups according their implantation outcomes (100% or 0% implantation).

The predictive value of high-magnification sperm morphology examination on ICSI outcomes in the presence of oocyte dysmorphisms.

Purpose: To evaluate the relationship between oocyte dysmorphisms and IMSI outcomes

Methods: Data of IMSI cycles performed in 332 patients were included in this study. Patients were included only if presented more than four and less than 30 oocytes upon oocyte retrieval. Patients who underwent IMSI were matched, concerning female age and sperm parameters, with patients who underwent ICSI in the same period (n = 332).

Do weekend oocyte retrievals have an impact on the intracytoplasmic sperm injection cycles outcome?

Introduction: Despite the fact that ovarian stimulation is controlled, it is not always predictable. Because the day of human chorionic gonadotrophin (hCG) injection depends mainly on the patient's ovarian response to gonadotrophins, the day of oocyte retrieval cannot be determined in advance. As a result, oocyte retrievals are often scheduled to occur on weekends, a fact that entails at least one extra working day for the staff, and could lead to physical and psychological stress, especially in embryologists.

Relationship between oocyte abnormal morphology and intracytoplasmic sperm injection outcomes: a meta-analysis.

The aim of this study was to perform a meta-analysis of the potential effects of oocyte morphological abnormalities on ICSI outcomes. Relevant original papers reporting on the relation between oocyte morphology and ICSI outcomes were identified by searching MEDLINE, EMBASE and the Cochrane Library. The main outcome measures were fertilisation rate and embryo quality.

Secretome of the preimplantation human embryo by bottom-up label-free proteomics.

A bottom-up label-free mass spectrometric proteomic strategy was used to analyse the protein profiles of the human embryonic secretome. Culture media samples used for embryonic culture of patients undergoing intracytoplasmic sperm injection cycles were selected as a test case for this exploratory proof-of-principle study. The media were stored after embryo transfer and then pooled into positive (n = 8) and negative (n = 8) implantation groups.

Intracytoplasmic morphologically selected sperm injection benefits for patients with oligoasthenozoospermia according to the 2010 World Health Organization reference values.

The comparison between the outcomes of intracytoplasmic morphologically selected sperm injection performed in couples with male factor infertility according to the World Health Organization guidelines from 1999 and 2010 was the objective of this study. Our results suggest that the sperm selection under high magnification results in improved treatment outcomes in patients with oligoasthenoteratozoospermia, according to the new World Health Organization guidelines.

Are poor responders patients at higher risk for producing aneuploid embryos in vitro?

Purpose: To test the hypothesis that aged women with poor ovarian response express an increase on embryo chromosomal alterations when compared to aged women who presented normal response.

Methods: Couples undergoing intracytoplasmic sperm injection cycles with preimplantation genetic screening, were subdivided into two groups: Poor Responder group (n = 34), patients who produced ≤4 oocytes; and Normoresponder group (n = 50), patients who produced ≥5 oocytes. Groups were compared regarding cycles' outcomes and aneuploidy frequency.

Intracytoplasmic sperm injection outcome versus intracytoplasmic morphologically selected sperm injection outcome: a meta-analysis.

The development of a modified intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), called intracytoplasmic morphologically selected sperm injection (IMSI), demonstrated that a profound morphological investigation of the spermatozoon, under the magnification of 6600 x, enables outcome improvement. The aim of this study was to compare ICSI outcome with IMSI outcome. The meta-analysis results demonstrated no significant difference in fertilization rate between ICSI and IMSI groups.