10% of people worldwide over the age of 40 are affected by COPD.

Researchers screened 1,003 people aged 40 and over who were current or former heavy smokers. Heavy smoking was defined as a smoking history of 20 pack-years or more.

The results showed that 20.7% of the people screened met the criteria for a diagnosis of COPD but only 32.7% had previously been diagnosed with the disease or were aware of their COPD diagnosis.

Bodysong is a film that was created in 2003 that basically shows the process of human life (womb to tomb) without any dialogue. The entire soundtrack was done by Radiohead!

Preview the film below.

Images of the exhibition above and full details below; if you are based in New Zealand, be sure to check this out!

Still Life: The Art of Anatomy
Saturday, 10 July 2010 – 12 September 2010
Dunedin Public Art Gallery
Dunedin, New Zealand

Noted Dunedin based filmmaker and medical doctor Paul Trotman, has worked closely with the Dunedin Public Art Gallery in researching Dunedin’s rich collections towards the realization of Still Life: The Art of Anatomy. This exhibition brings together an array of historical and contemporary items, such as Dr John Halliday Scott’s elegant anatomical drawings and old master prints, through to porcelain and wax casts of aspects of the body and the latest interactive computer generated 3D anatomical models. Still Life provides a stunning insight into this complex subject and also reveals the important lineage that science and art shares through the analysis, distillation and depiction of the human form.

You can find out more by clicking here or here.

Researchers have discovered clues that may help identify which people with depression are at risk of developing bipolar disorder.

In 1971, Cambridge physiologist Robert Edwards and Oldham gynaecologist Patrick Steptoe applied to the UK Medical Research Council (MRC) for long-term support for a programme of scientific and clinical ‘Studies on Human Reproduction’. The MRC, then the major British funder of medical research, declined support on ethical grounds and maintained this policy throughout the 1970s. The work continued with private money, leading to the birth of Louise Brown in 1978 and transforming research in obstetrics, gynaecology and human embryology.

METHODS

The MRC decision has been criticized, but the processes by which it was reached have yet to be explored. Here, we present an archive-based analysis of the MRC decision.

RESULTS

We find evidence of initial support for Edwards and Steptoe, including from within the MRC, which invited the applicants to join its new directly funded Clinical Research Centre at Northwick Park Hospital. They declined the offer, preferring long-term grant support at the University of Cambridge, and so exposed the project to competitive funding mode. Referees and the Clinical Research Board saw the institutional set-up in Cambridge as problematic with respect to clinical facilities and patient management; gave infertility a low priority compared with population control; assessed interventions as purely experimental rather than potential treatments, and so set the bar for safety high; feared fatal abnormalities and so wanted primate experiments first; and were antagonized by the applicants’ high media profile. The rejection set MRC policy on IVF for 8 years, until, after the birth of just two healthy babies, the Council rapidly converted to enthusiastic support.

CONCLUSIONS

This analysis enriches our view of a crucial decision, highlights institutional opportunities and constraints and provides insight into the then dominant attitudes of reproductive scientists and clinicians towards human conception research.

Testicular peritubular cells form an ill-characterized cellular compartment of the human testis, which forms a border with Sertoli cells and spermatogonial stem cells (SSCs). A recently developed culture method has identified parts of the secretory repertoire of human testicular peritubular cells (HTPCs), which includes nerve growth factor. Whether peritubular cells produce glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) and may thus contribute to the stem cell niche is not known.

METHODS

We studied GDNF production in isolated peritubular cells from men with normal spermatogenesis (HTPCs) and impaired spermatogenesis and testicular fibrosis (HTPC-Fs). Human testicular biopsies and peritubular cells in culture were evaluated using immunohistochemistry, laser microdissection (LMD), RT–PCR and measurement of GDNF and cAMP by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. We also tested whether GDNF production is regulated by tumour necrosis factor- (TNF-) or tryptase, the products of mast cells or macrophages.

RESULTS

Peritubular wall cells are in close proximity to cells expressing the GDNF family co-receptor-1. GDNF mRNA was detected in LMD samples of the peritubular and tubular but not interstitial compartments. HTPCs and HTPC-Fs lack FSH- and LH-receptors but express receptors for TNF- and tryptase. Importantly, peritubular cells express GDNF and constitutively released GDNF into the medium in comparably high amounts. TNF- and tryptase had no effect on the secretion of GDNF by HTPCs or HTPC-Fs.

CONCLUSIONS

Peritubular cells in testes of normal and sub-/infertile men produce GDNF and are likely constitutive contributors of the SSC niche in the human testis.

TR-KIT, a truncated form of KIT (the KITL receptor), corresponding to the c-terminal half of the intracellular split tyrosine kinase domain, is expressed during the haploid stages of mouse spermatogenesis, and is one of the candidate sperm factors possibly involved in egg activation at fertilization.

METHODS

Immunocytochemistry of adult human testis, and studies of human semen samples from volunteer donors through immunofluorescence, confocal microscopy, flow cytometry, western blot and RT–PCR analyses were performed.

RESULTS

We show that the TR-KIT is expressed during spermiogenesis in the human testis, and that it is maintained in human ejaculated spermatozoa. TR-KIT is localized both in the equatorial segment and in the sub-acrosomal region of the human sperm head. The equatorial localization of the TR-KIT persists after the spontaneous acrosome reaction. Cytometric analysis of several sperm samples from volunteer donors, showed variable degrees of the TR-KIT-specific immunolabeling, and a significant inverse correlation (Pearson’s coefficient, r = –0.76, P < 0.0001, n = 23) of the TR-KIT positivity with markers of sperm damage, i.e. DNA fragmentation, as revealed by terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated deoxyuridine triphosphate-nick end labeling (TUNEL) analysis and the intense clusterin positivity. We also found less significant inverse correlation with altered head morphology (r = –0.47, P < 0.05, n = 23) and direct correlation with sperm forward motility parameters (r = 0.59, P < 0.01, n = 23).

CONCLUSIONS

The TR-KIT is present in the equatorial region of human spermatozoa, which is the first sperm component entering into the oocyte cytoplasm after fusion with the egg. This localization is consistent with the function previously proposed for this protein in mice. In addition, the TR-KIT represents a potential predictive parameter of human sperm quality.

Idiopathic secondary recurrent miscarriage may be associated with an abnormal maternal immune response to subsequent pregnancies. Intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) has been studied in randomized controlled trials (RCTs) with conflicting results. Therefore, a definitive trial was proposed.

METHODS

We conducted an investigator-initiated, multicentered, randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled trial comparing IVIG with saline in women with idiopathic secondary recurrent miscarriage, defined as a history of at least one prior ongoing pregnancy followed by three or more consecutive unexplained miscarriages. Subjects received either IVIG 500 mg/kg or the equivalent volume of normal saline. Preconception infusions were administered 14–21 days from the projected next menstrual period. With documentation of pregnancy, the subject received the same infusion every 4 weeks until 18–20 weeks of gestation. The primary outcome was an ongoing pregnancy of at least 20 weeks of gestation.

RESULTS

A total of 82 patients enrolled, of whom 47 had an index pregnancy. All ongoing pregnancies resulted in live births. Therefore, the live birth rates were 70% (16/23) in the IVIG group and 63% (15/24) in the control group (P = 0.760); odds ratio (OR) 1.37 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.41–4.61]. Including only clinical pregnancies (embryo with cardiac activity at 6 weeks of gestation), the live birth rates were equivalent, 94% (16/17) and (15/16), respectively (P > 0.999); OR 1.07 (95% CI 0.06–18.62). Meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) evaluating IVIG for idiopathic secondary recurrent miscarriage revealed live birth rates of 70% (31/44) in the IVIG group and 62% (28/45) in the control group (P = 0.503); common OR 1.44 (95% CI 0.59–3.48).

CONCLUSIONS

This is the largest RCT to date in which IVIG was evaluated in women with idiopathic secondary recurrent miscarriage; no treatment benefit was found. The meta-analysis, which combined our study results with two prior RCTs, also showed no significant effect of treatment with IVIG.

ClinicalTrials.gov NCT00606905.

The recent introduction of virtual reality (VR) enables us to use all three dimensions in a three-dimensional (3D) image. The aim of this prospective study was to evaluate an innovative VR technique for automated 3D volume measurements of the human embryo and yolk sac in first trimester pregnancies.

METHODS

We analysed 180 3D first trimester ultrasound scans of 42 pregnancies. Scans were transferred to an I-Space VR system and visualized as 3D ‘holograms’ with the V-Scope volume-rendering software. A semi-automatic segmentation algorithm was used to calculate the volumes. The logarithmically transformed outcomes were analysed using repeated measurements ANOVA. Interobserver and intraobserver agreement was established by calculating intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs).

RESULTS

Eighty-eight embryonic volumes (EVs) and 118 yolk sac volumes (YSVs) were selected and measured between 5⁺⁵ and 12⁺⁶ weeks of gestational age (GA). EV ranged from 14 to 29 877 mm³ and YSV ranged from 33 to 424 mm³. ANOVA calculations showed that when the crown-rump length (CRL) doubles, the mean EV increases 6.5-fold and when the GA doubles, the mean EV increases 500-fold (P < 0.001). Furthermore, it was found that a doubling in GA results in a 3.8-fold increase of the YSV and when the CRL doubles, the YSV increases 1.5-fold (P < 0.001). Interobserver and intraobserver agreement were both excellent with ICCs of 0.99.

CONCLUSION

We measured the human EV and YSV in early pregnancy using a VR system. This innovative technique allows us to obtain unique information about the size of the embryo using all dimensions, which may be used to differentiate between normal and abnormal human development.

Embryo implantation in the uterus involves the trophoblast cells apposing and adhering to, then invading across the epithelium lining of the endometrium. However, ethical concerns regarding experimentation with primary human tissue during this period of life necessitates creation of in vitro models for understanding the basic mechanisms involved. Toll-like receptors (TLRs) play a crucial role in defence against pathogens invading the female reproductive tract. The objective of this study is to establish and optimize an in vitro model for studying human endometrial embryonic interactions and to understand the effect of TLR5 stimulation on the attachment of trophoblast cells to endometrial cells.

METHODS

By using a human telomerase immortalized endometrial epithelial cell line (hTERT-EECs) and choriocarcinoma human trophoblast cells (JAr cells), an in vitro assay of human implantation was established. In order to investigate the impact of TLR5 stimulation on attachment in this assay, bacterial flagellin was applied to the endometrial and trophoblast cells. In order to block TLR5 in the endometrial and trophoblast cells, TLR5 function-blocking antibody was applied to the cells prior to flagellin treatment.

RESULTS

The results demonstrated that JAr spheroids attached to hTERT-EECs in a time and concentration-dependent manner. Our results also demonstrated that treatment of endometrial cells with flagellin, suppressed the attachment of JAr spheres to the endometrial cells. Application of TLR5 function-blocking antibody significantly restored the attachment of JAr spheres to the endometrium.

CONCLUSIONS

These data suggest a novel mechanism by which the presence of intrauterine infection through TLR5 activation may result in implantation failure. These data may provide a new opportunity in the management of infertility cases.

The mononuclear villous cytotrophoblast (CTB) differentiates and fuses to the multinucleated syncytiotrophoblast (STB), which produces hCG and progesterone. cAMP-mediated intracellular pathways are involved in the process of endocrine differentiation and fusion (syncytialization). The exchange protein directly activated by cAMP (Epac) is a mediator of cAMP signaling. We examined the differential roles of Epac and protein kinase A (PKA) signaling in the cell fusion and differentiation of trophoblast-derived BeWo cells.

METHODS

Epac1 and Epac2 were localized in human placental tissue (n = 9) by immunohistochemistry. The PKA-selective cAMP analog (N⁶-phenyl-cAMP, Phe) or Epac-selective cAMP analog (CPT) was tested for effects on hCG and progesterone production, and syncytialization in BeWo cells. The effect of knockdown of Epac or its downstream target molecule (Rap1) on syncytialization was evaluated.

RESULTS

Epac1 and Epac2 proteins were expressed in villous CTB, STB, stroma, blood vessels and extravillous CTB of the placenta. Phe increased the expression of hCG/β mRNA and secretion of hCG protein in BeWo cells (P < 0.01 versus control). CPT-stimulated production of hCG (P < 0.05), albeit to a lesser extent than Phe. Progesterone production was also enhanced by Phe or CPT (P < 0.01 and P < 0.05, respectively). CPT or a stable cAMP analog (dibutyryl-cAMP: Db) increased the number of syncytialized BeWo cells (P < 0.01), whereas Phe did not stimulate fusion. CPT- or Db-induced syncytialization was observed, even in the presence of a PKA inhibitor. Knockdown of Epac1 or Rap1 repressed the Db-, CPT- or forskolin-induced cell fusion.

CONCLUSIONS

The Epac signaling pathway may be associated with the cAMP-mediated functional differentiation and syncytialization of human trophoblasts.

An efficient oocyte cryopreservation method is mandatory to establish a successful egg-banking programme. Although there are increasing reports showing good clinical outcomes after oocyte cryopreservation, there is still a lack of large controlled studies evaluating the effectiveness of oocyte cryo-banking. In this study, we aimed to compare the outcome of vitrified-banked oocytes with the gold standard procedure of employing fresh oocytes.

METHODS

A randomized, prospective, triple-blind, single-centre, parallel-group controlled-clinical trial (NCT00785993), including 600 recipients ( = 0.05 and power of 80% for sample-size calculation) selected among 1032 eligible patients from November 2008 to September 2009, was designed to compare the outcome of vitrified-banked oocytes with the gold standard procedure of employing fresh oocytes. The study was designed to establish the superiority of the ongoing pregnancy rate (OPR) of fresh oocytes over that of vitrified oocytes, by performing a likelihood ratio test in a logistic regression analysis expressed as odds ratio (OR) with 95% confidence interval (CI). A limit of 0.66 for OR of vitrified versus fresh groups was defined to set up a possible conversion from superiority to non-inferiority. Randomization was performed 1:1 based on a computer randomization list in vitrification (n = 300) or fresh groups (n = 300). The primary end-point was the OPR per randomized patient i.e. intention-to-treat population (ITT). Secondary end-points were clinical pregnancy (CPR), implantation (IR) and fertilization rates, respectively. Additionally, embryo developmental characteristics were recorded.

RESULTS

There were no differences in donor ovarian stimulation parameters, demographic baseline characteristics for donors and recipients, ovum donation indications or male factor distribution between groups (NS). The OPR per ITT was 43.7 and 41.7% in the vitrification and fresh groups, respectively. The OR of OPR was 0.921 in favour of the vitrification group. Nevertheless, the 95% CI was 0.667–1.274, thus the superiority of fresh group with respect to OPR was not proven (P = 0.744). Non-inferiority of the vitrified group compared with the fresh group was shown with a margin of 0.667, which was above the pre-established non-inferiority limit of 0.66. CPR per cycle (50.2 versus 49.8%; P = 0.933) or per embryo-transfer (55.4 versus 55.6% ; P = 0.974), and IR (39.9 versus 40.9%; P = 0.745) were similar for patients receiving either vitrified or fresh oocytes. The proportion of top-quality embryos obtained either by inseminated oocyte (30.8 versus 30.8% for Day-2; and 36.1 versus 37.7% for Day-3, respectively) or by cleaved embryos (43.6 versus 43.8% for Day-2 and 58.4 versus 60.7% for Day-3, respectively) was similar between groups (NS).

CONCLUSIONS

This controlled-randomized, clinical trial confirmed the effectiveness of oocyte cryo-storage in an ovum donation programme, failing to demonstrate the superiority of using fresh oocytes with respect to the use of vitrified egg-banked ones in terms of OPR. Instead, the non-inferiority of vitrified oocytes was confirmed. These findings involve highly relevant issues that may open a new range of possibilities in ART.

Clinical Trials identifier: www.clinicaltrials.gov: NCT 00785993.

Adiponectin, a pleiotropic hormone secreted from adipose tissue, can mediate some negative effects of obesity on female health, and can participate in the impaired reproductive performance of obese women. Using a mouse model, we investigated expression of adiponectin receptors in ovulated oocytes and in vivo derived preimplantation embryos, and tested effects of different adiponectin isoforms on development of preimplantation embryos in vitro.

METHODS AND RESULTS

Using RT–PCR and immunohistochemistry, we found expression of adiponectin receptors AdipoR1 and AdipoR2, at the mRNA and protein level, in mouse ovulated oocytes and preimplantation embryos. Quantitative real-time RT–PCR analysis showed a decrease in the amount of AdipoR1 and AdipoR2 mRNA after fertilization, which was followed by an increase in mRNA at the morula and blastocyst stage; mRNA for adiponectin was detected only at the blastocyst stage. Administration of full-length adiponectin significantly changed the distribution in numbers of cells of cultured preimplantation embryos, increasing the proportion of embryos with high cell numbers (>128 cells) and decreasing the proportion of embryos with lower cell numbers (<65 cells). Blastocysts possessed significantly higher cell numbers after full-length adiponectin treatment. Mutated trimeric adiponectin had the opposite effect, a significant decrease in the proportion of embryos with higher cell numbers (>96 cells) and increase in the proportion of embryos with lower cell numbers (<65 cells). Trimeric adiponectin also significantly decreased the cell number and increased cell death in blastocysts. Truncated globular adiponectin had no significant effect on development of mouse preimplantation embryos.

CONCLUSIONS

Our results indicate that adiponectin can directly influence the development of the preimplantation embryo, and the effects are isoform dependent.

Current methods of hormonal emergency contraception (EC) are ineffective in preventing follicular rupture when administered in the advanced pre-ovulatory phase. This study was designed to determine the capacity of ulipristal acetate (UPA), a selective progesterone receptor modulator developed for EC, to block follicular rupture when administered with a follicle of ≥18 mm.

METHODS

This was a double-blind, crossover, randomized, placebo-controlled study. Thirty-five women contributed with UPA (30 mg. oral) and a placebo cycle. Serial blood sampling for luteinizing hormone (LH), estradiol and progesterone measurements and follicular monitoring by ultrasound were performed before and for 5 days following treatment. Follicular rupture inhibition was assessed in the overall study population and in subgroups of women stratified by when treatment was administered in relation to LH levels (before the onset of the LH surge, after the onset of the surge but before the LH peak or after the LH peak).

RESULTS

Follicular rupture failed to occur for at least 5 days following UPA administration in 20/34 cycles [59%; 95% confidence interval (CI) (40.7–75.4%)], whereas rupture took place in all cycles within 5 days of placebo intake. When UPA was administered before the onset of the LH surge, or after the onset but before the LH peak, follicle rupture had not occurred within 5 days in 8/8 (100%) and 11/14 [78.6%; 95% CI (49.2–95.3)] cycles, respectively. In contrast, when UPA was given after the LH peak, follicle rupture inhibition was only observed in 1/12 [8.3%; 95% CI (0.2–38.5)] cycles.

CONCLUSIONS

This study demonstrates that UPA can significantly delay follicular rupture when given immediately before ovulation. This new generation EC compound could possibly prevent pregnancy when administered in the advanced follicular phase, even if LH levels have already begun to rise, a time when levonorgestrel EC is no longer effective in inhibiting ovulation.

NCT01107093: Comparison of CDB-2914 versus placebo in the prevention of follicular rupture post-LH surge.

Submucous fibroids are common benign tumours responsible for menorrhagia, subfertility and miscarriage. They can be readily removed by hysteroscopic transcervical resection of myoma (TCRM). To facilitate resection, pre-operative GnRH analogues have been suggested, but the value of this treatment is uncertain. Our aim was to assess the value of pre-operative GnRH analogues for the resection of submucous fibroids.

METHODS

This was a prospective, double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized trial. Women found to have submucous fibroids on three-dimensional saline infusion sonohysterography (3D SIS) were randomized to receive GnRH or placebo. Following treatment patients underwent TCRM by a single operator blinded to the group allocation. Women were followed up 6 weeks after their operation to ascertain resolution of symptoms. The primary outcome measure of the study was completeness of fibroid resection. Secondary outcome measures included the duration of the TCRM, the fluid deficit recorded at TCRM, the resolution of symptoms post-operatively and the number of subsequent fibroid related operations.

RESULTS

Forty-seven women were randomized to GnRH or placebo. On the basis of intention-to-treat analysis, there was no significant difference in the number of complete fibroid resections between women who received GnRH analogues [14/24, 58.3% (95% CI 38.6–78.1)] and those who received placebo [16/23, 69.6% (50.8–88.4)] (RR 0.84, 95% CI 0.54–1.29; P = 0.43). Similarly there was no significant difference between the groups in any of the secondary outcome measures.

CONCLUSIONS

Our study does not support routine administration of GnRH analogues before transcervical resection of fibroid as we did not identify any benefit in such treatment.

Controlled-trials.com: ISRCTN06560767.

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effect of gonadotrophin-releasing hormone agonist (GnRH-a), which is widely used in the medical treatment of symptomatic myomas, on the rate of endometrial cell apoptosis in cultures from women with symptomatic myomas.

METHODS

The study included 36 women with symptomatic myomas without endometrial hyperplasia or endometrial carcinoma, and 22 controls. Endometrial biopsy specimens were obtained from all subjects. Levels of apoptosis were examined in epithelial endometrial cell cultures before and after incubation with GnRH-a (triptorelin). The percentage of apoptotic cells was evaluated using the terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated d-UTP nick end labeling assay and flow cytometry was used to evaluate Annexin V levels.

RESULTS

Levels of spontaneous apoptosis were significantly lower in endometrial cultures from patients with symptomatic myomas than in those from control subjects (P < 0.01). Concentrations as low as 10^–7 M GnRH-a enhanced apoptosis in endometrial cultures from patients with symptomatic myomas (3.48% ± 0.27% apoptotic cells in untreated samples and 25.45 ± 0.95% in cells treated with 10^–7 M GnRH-a; P <0.01). The percentage of apoptotic cells also increased when cultures from control women were treated with GnRH-a (8.10 ± 0.18% in untreated samples and 15.29 ± 2.30% in treated samples; P <0.01). Levels of apoptosis were dependent on both dose of GnRH-a and time of treatment.

CONCLUSIONS

GnRH-a stimulates apoptosis in endometrial cells from patients with symptomatic myomas and this could, at least in part, account for the therapeutic action of GnRH-a.

Adnexal torsion (AT) is difficult to diagnose and requires immediate surgery. The aim of this study was to develop a simple score for assisting in the pre-operative diagnosis of AT in women with acute pelvic pain.

METHODS

Using data from a retrospective cohort of 142 patients with acute pelvic pain, we developed a score based on multiple logistic regression after a jackknife procedure. We validated the score in a prospective cohort of 35 women with acute pelvic pain.

RESULTS

Five criteria were independently associated with AT confirmed by surgery: unilateral lumbar or abdominal pain [adjusted odds ratio (aOR), 4.1; 95% confidence interval (95% CI), 1.2–14.0]; pain duration <8 h at first presentation (aOR, 8.0; 95% CI, 1.7–37.5), vomiting (aOR, 7.9; 95% CI, 2.3–27.0), absence of leucorrhoea and metrorrhagia (aOR, 12.6; 95% CI, 2.3–67.6) and ovarian cyst larger than 5 cm by ultrasonography (aOR, 10.6; 95% CI, 2.9–38.8). The torsion score was based on these five criteria. Low-risk and high-risk groups were derived from values of the score [probability of AT, 3.7% (95% CI, 0–7.8) and 69% (95% CI, 53–84), respectively]. Application of these criteria to the prospective cohort confirmed the diagnostic accuracy of the score [probability of AT, 0% (95% CI, 0–16) and 75% (95% CI, 26–100) in the low-risk and high-risk groups, respectively].

CONCLUSIONS

This easy-to-calculate score may prove useful for diagnosing AT in patients with acute pelvic pain seen at general or gynaecology emergency departments.

There are different funding arrangements for fertility treatments between New Zealand (NZ) and Australia. In NZ, there are two options for patients accessing treatment: either meeting specified criteria for age, no smoking and BMI for publicly funding or funding their own treatment. This differs from Australia, which has no explicit eligibility criteria restricting access to fertility treatment. An analysis of assisted reproductive technology (ART) in Australia and NZ was undertaken to consider the impact of these different funding approaches.

METHODS

Data were extracted from the Australian and New Zealand Assisted Reproduction Database between 2004 and 2007. A total of 116 111 autologous fresh cycles were included.

RESULTS

In Australia, more cycles were in women aged 40 years or older compared with those in NZ (23.5 versus 16.0%, P < 0.01). Single embryo transfer was more common in NZ than that in Australia, in women < 35 years of age (75.1 versus 59.6%, P < 0.01). In women <35 years, the crude rates of clinical pregnancy (37.5 versus 31.2%, P < 0.01) and live delivery (31.6 versus 26%, P < 0.01) following fresh ART cycles were significantly higher in NZ than that in Australia. These differences in outcomes persisted in older age groups.

CONCLUSIONS

The purpose of the criteria used in NZ to access public funding for fertility treatments is to optimize pregnancy outcomes. This approach has resulted in a healthier population of women undergoing treatment and may explain the improved pregnancy outcomes seen in NZ couples who undergo fertility treatments.

Ovarian stimulation regimens for in vitro fertilization seem to have a deleterious effect on oocyte quality and embryo aneuploidy in a dose-dependent manner. This study aims to test the influence of gonadotrophin doses on embryo aneuploidy rates.

METHODS

A total of 32 young oocyte donors with a high response to ovarian stimulation, were included in the study. Two subsequent stimulation treatments were performed in each donor: first, a standard dose cycle using a 225 IU starting dose of recombinant FSH (r-FSH) and secondly, a reduced dose cycle with a starting dose of 150 IU r-FSH. In both cycles, GnRH agonist co-treatment was used for down-regulation. Ovarian response, embryo development and aneuploidy for chromosomes 13, 15, 16, 17, 18, 21, 22, X and Y were the main outcomes of the study.

RESULTS

A total of 22 donors completed both treatments with different gonadotrophin doses. In the remaining 10 donors, the reduced dose cycle was cancelled due to low ovarian response. In those donors who completed both regimens, significant increases in rates of fertilization and chromosomally normal blastocysts were observed in the reduced dose cycle. No differences were observed in pregnancy and implantation rates in recipients who received oocytes from standard and reduced doses cycles.

CONCLUSIONS

Despite the limited numbers in our study, we can conclude that in high responder donors, a decrease in the gonadotrophin dose could improve fertilization rates and embryo quality. However, due to the reduced oocyte numbers with lower doses, a similar reproductive outcome in terms of live births would be expected.

Clinical Trial.gov Identifier: nCT 00802295.