Roles of Antiphospholipid Antibodies, Antithyroid Antibodies and Antisperm Antibodies in Female Reproductive Health

Autoantibodies are implicated in various human diseases. In this review, the effects of three different types of autoantibodies (antiphospholipid antibody, antithyroid antibody, and antisperm antibody) on female reproductive health are critically examined. Antiphospholipid antibodies are being detected more frequently in women undergoing in vitro fertilization, but their presence does not appear to influence the outcome of pregnancy, miscarriage, or live birth rates. Available evidence makes it conclusive that antiphospholipid antibodies play negligible roles in recurrent miscarriage. Treatment with aspirin together with low-molecularweight heparin appears to be effective for recurrent miscarriage. Although antithyroid antibodies are commonly found in women of reproductive age, implantation rates and miscarriage rates are unaffected when women have normal thyroid function. Women with thyroid dysfunction should be treated with L -thyroxine before conception or at early gestational stages to avoid pregnancy complications. Antisperm antibodies are uncommon but are most often associated with ovarian hypofunction. They are believed to cause fertilization failure when found at high titers in seminal plasma, or in the mucosal immune system of women. Intrauterine artificial insemination and in vitro fertilization/embryo transfer are effective treatment modalities for antisperm antibody-related infertility, although this remains a controversial topic in the field of female infertility. © 2015 S. Karger AG, Basel Received: February 11, 2015 Accepted after revision: March 24, 2015 Published online: July 16, 2015 Prof. Guo Qing Tong, MD, PhD Reproductive Medicine Center, Shuguang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine 528, Zhangheng Rd, Shanghai 201203 (China) E-Mail tongguoqing @ hotmail.com www.karger.com/imi DOI: 10.1159/000381900 This is an Open Access article licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons AttributionNonCommercial 3.0 Unported license (CC BY-NC) (www.karger.com/OA-license), applicable to the online version of the article only. Distribution permitted for non-commercial purposes only. D ow nl oa de d by : 54 .7 0. 40 .1 1 11 /2 0/ 20 17 4 :1 2: 45 A M 22 Integr Med Int 2015;2:21–31 DOI: 10.1159/000381900 Heng et al.: Roles of Antiphospholipid Antibodies, Antithyroid Antibodies and Antisperm Antibodies in Female Reproductive Health www.karger.com/imi © 2015 S. Karger AG, Basel