Human Reproduction, Vol. 11, No. 7, pp. 1579-1582, 1996
© 1996 European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology
research-article |
In-vitro fertilization treatment for unexplained recurrent abortion: a pilot study
1Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Faculty of Medicine-University of Barcelona, Hospital Clínic 1 Provincial c/Casanova 143, 08036-Barcelona, Spain 2Department of Immunology Service, Faculty of Medicine-University of Barcelona, Hospital Clínic 1 Provincial c/Casanova 143, 08036-Barcelona, Spain
Correspondence: 3To whom correspondence should be addressed
To determine the effectiveness of in-vitro fertilization (IVF) and embryo transfer for patients with unexplained habitual abortion, we carried out a prospective observational study using a historical comparison group. A total of 12 couples with three or more (mean 4.91, range 310 miscarriages) first trimester spontaneous abortions of unknown aetiology were treated with IVF and embryo transfer (group 1). Patients underwent IVF after combined gonadotrophin-releasing hormone agonist/gonadotrophin treatment for ovarian stimulation, and three to four embryos were replaced into the uterus in all women. Eight of the 12 women (66.6%) in group 1 became pregnant (one patient after a frozen-thawed embryo transfer), and all of them had viable pregnancies. A patient with 10 previous abortions became pregnant and carried to term after IVF and embryo transfer, and subsequently miscarried two new spontaneous gestations. A historical comparison group (group 2) included the last eight women with unexplained recurrent abortion (mean 4, range 38 miscarriages) who underwent the same investigations for the condition and received identical early supportive care in their next spontaneous pregnancy as patients in group 1. Three of the eight pregnancies in group 2 ended in an abortion. Our results suggest that IVF and embryo transfer may be a new therapeutic approach for unexplained recurrent miscarriage.
Key words: in-vitro fertilization/recurrent miscarriage/unexplained recurrent abortion