STUDY QUESTION Are first trimester trophoblast volume (TV) and placental bed vascular volume (PBVV) different in IVF or IVF/ICSI pregnancies in comparison with spontaneously conceived pregnancies? SUMMARY ANSWER Any possible abnormal placentation in IVF or IVF/ICSI pregnancies in comparison with spontaneously conceived pregnancies is not detected by a difference in PBVV or TV at an early gest...

BACKGROUND The present study highlights basic physiological differences associated with oocyte maturation and ageing. The study explores the fertilizing capacity and resistance to injury of mouse oocytes at different stages of maturation and ageing following IVF and ICSI. Also, the study examines the developmental competence of embryos obtained from these oocytes. The outcome of the study suppo...

Background: Conventional IVF and ICSI are two common techniques to achieve fertilization. IVF has long been used for treatment of infertility, although it is not an effective treatment in severe male infertility. The use of ICSI has been expanded in severe male factor and fertilization failure after IVF cycle. In spite of the widespread use of ICSI in patients with non-male factor infertility, ...

BACKGROUND To verify whether or not microinjection of sperm with a normal nuclear shape but large vacuoles affects IVF-ICSI pregnancy outcome. METHODS A comparative study testing IVF outcome parameters of IVF-ICSI, based on morphological selection of spermatozoa with normal nuclei against those based on microinjection of sperm with a normal nuclear shape but large vacuoles. An experimental gr...

OBJECTIVE Correlations between semen parameters and sperm DNA fragmentation index (DFI) were investigated to identify characteristics of sperm without DNA damage that could be used in selecting sperm for intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI). Pregnancy outcomes were compared to determine whether in vitro fertilization (IVF) or ICSI is a better choice for patients who have sperm with a high-DF...

Sperm morphology is the best predictor of fertilization potential, and the critical predictive information for supporting assisted reproductive methods selection. Given its important predictive value and the declining reality of semen quality in recent years, the threshold of normal sperm morphology rate (NSMR) is being constantly corrected and controversial, from the 4th edition (14%) to the 5...

Intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) is the latest of several microfertilization techniques that have been utilized predominantly to overcome severe male subfertility, giving fertilization and term pregnancy rates similar to conventional in-vitro fertilization (IVF) (but for other indications). Even though available data on children born after ICSI are very encouraging, the procedure must st...

STUDY QUESTION During controlled ovarian stimulation (COS), does the duration of premature serum progesterone (P) elevation before administration of hCG affect the outcomes of IVF/ICSI embryo transfer (-ET) cycles? SUMMARY ANSWER The duration of the premature serum P elevation is inversely related to the clinical pregnancy rate of IVF/ICSI-ET cycles. WHAT IS KNOWN AND WHAT THIS PAPER ADDS T...

Assisted reproductive technology with intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) is becoming an international panacea for couples struggling with infertility. The increasing popularity of these techniques and the data generated has given us a better understanding of the efficacy, consequences and costs of these procedures. There still remain many unanswered questions and controversies surrounding ...

Many studies emphasize the influence of the status of spermatozoal nucleus on fertilization, mainly with regard to DNA fragmentation. This study was undertaken to analyze the influence of DNA adducts content in spermatozoa on fertilization during assisted reproduction. Ovarian hyperstimulation, oocyte retrieval and laboratory work-up in 61 IVF (in vitro fertilization) and 118 ICSI (intracytopla...