Korean J Obstet Gynecol.  2005 Oct;48(10):2367-2376.

Clinical Efficacy of Low-dose Aspirin and Prednisolone in Controlled Ovarian Hyperstimulation for In Vitro Fertilization and Embryo Transfer

• Kim YJ
• Lee CH
• Han SS
• Choi YS
• Lee JR
• Jee BC
• Ku SY
• Suh CS
• Choi YM
• Kim JG
• Moon SY
• Kim SH

Abstract

OBJECTIVE
To determine whether the use of low-dose aspirin and prednisolone in controlled ovarian hyperstimulation (COH) with GnRH agonist long protocol improves the outcomes of in vitro fertilization and embryo transfer (IVF-ET).
METHODS
Two hundred and forty IVF-ET cycles were assigned to four groups: control group (aspirin(-) and prednisolone(-), n=59), low-dose aspirin group (aspirin(+) and prednisolone(-), n=43, Group 1), prednisolone group (aspirin(-) and prednisolone(+), n=80, Group 2), and low-dose aspirin and prednisolone group (aspirin(+) and prednisolone(+), n=58, Group 3). The COH and pregnancy outcomes were retrospectively compared among the four groups.
RESULTS
Group 1 showed higher fertilization rate with a borderline significance compared to control group (73.6% vs. 64.1%, p=0.050). Serum estradiol (E2) level on hCG day was 995.5+/-767.5 pg/mL in control group, 1,550.7+/-1,254.5 pg/mL in group 1, 1,469.2+/-1,206.6 pg/mL in group 2 and 1,796.0+/-1,548.0 pg/mL in group 3 and higher in the three treatment groups compared to control (p=0.012, p=0.006, p<0.001, respectively). Embryo score per transferred embryo was also higher in Group 1 (17.4+/-8.4, p=0.001) and 3 (16.0+/-6.1, p<0.001) compared to control (12.2+/-5.1). There were no significant differences in the implantation and the pregnancy rates among the four groups.
CONCLUSION
The use of low-dose aspirin or prednisolone may be beneficial in IVF-ET patients undergoing COH with GnRH agonist long protocol. Further larger-scale prospective randomized investigations are necessary to confirm these findings.

Keyword

IVF-ET; COH; Low-dose aspirin; Prednisolone

MeSH Terms

Aspirin*
Embryo Transfer*
Embryonic Structures*
Estradiol
Female
Fertilization
Fertilization in Vitro*
Gonadotropin-Releasing Hormone
Humans
Prednisolone*
Pregnancy
Pregnancy Outcome
Pregnancy Rate
Retrospective Studies
Aspirin
Estradiol
Gonadotropin-Releasing Hormone
Prednisolone