Prevalence of Uterine Malformations in Newly Married Unselected Population
InfertilityUterine malformation is occur due to the abnormal development of Mullerian canal during embryogenesis and it is known that it reduces the fertility and live birth rate and also increases the abortion and preterm birth rate. There are different classification methods have been used for defining the uterine malformations. The most common used classification method in the World is American Society of Reproductive Medicine (ASRM)'s system. In addition European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology (ESHRE) and European Society for Gynaecological Endoscopy (ESGE) developed a new classification system. ASRM Uterine malformation Classification which is used for diagnosis and treatment of uterine malformations in our clinic is subdivided into 7 titles: Agenesis or Hypoplasia -(a. Vaginal b. Cervical c. Fundal d. Tubal e. Combine) Unicornuate -(a. Communicating Horn b. Non-Communicating Horn c. No Cavity d. No Horn) Uterus Didelphus Bicornuate Uterus-(a. Complete b. Partial) Uterine Septum- (a. Complete b. Partial) Arcuate Uterus Diethylstilboestrol (DES) Related The diagnosis of some of the uterine malformations have been done by using two dimensional (2D) ultrasonography, hysterosalphingography or surgically (laparoscopy or laparotomy) traditionally. A non-invasive procedure is required for the diagnosis of the uterine malformation, which is evaluating both the uterine contour and endometrial cavity. In recent years frequently used three dimensional (3D) ultrasound is a non-invasive and quick diagnostic technique, and also it is sensitive as MRI. In hospital based case control studies, the frequency of uterine malformation was generally around 6%, while it was 8% in infertile patients and 12% in patients with abortion. However, there is a lack of prospective studies investigating the prevalence of uterine anomalies, fertility potential and effects on pregnancy outcomes in unselected patient groups in the literature. Therefore, at the high level evidence, there is no evidence that these anomalies affect fertility and pregnancy outcomes and should be corrected. In this study it was aimed to investigate the effects of uterine malformations on fecundability and pregnancy outcomes by evaluating the uterine morphology with 3D ultrasonography and calling for control purposes at the 1st and 2nd years of newly married women between the ages of 18-40.
Relationship of the Microenvironment and Male Fertility
Male InfertilityMale HypogonadismAlthough much is known about the microenvironment of the gut and the vagina, very little has been published on the microenvironment of the seminal plasma. The seminal plasma is the support fluid for sperm, providing nutrients, facilitating sperm transit to the uterus, and promoting fertilization. It is a rich area of research for markers of fertility and treatment targets. The investigators hypothesize that (1) there are significant populations of seminal microorganisms associated with seminal leukocyte counts well below the WHO's cutoff for pyospermia (1 million/mL) that were not previously detected by traditional culturing methods, and (2) there are pathologic populations of bacteria within the gut and semen microbiome which negatively impact overall fertility, by directly or indirectly impairing hormone status. Participants will be recruited from the Male Fertility practice at the University of Illinois-Chicago (UIC). All participants will have infertility, diagnosed as an inability to conceive pregnancy after 12 months of unprotected intercourse. The normal evaluation of these participants is to obtain at least one semen analysis and bloodwork investigating their endocrine profile: total testosterone, estradiol, sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG), luteinizing hormone (LH), follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), and albumin. Semen volume is typically >1 mL, and <0.2 mL is typically used for the semen analysis. If over 1 million/mL round cells are identified, then a Papanicolaou stain would be performed to identify leukocytes. In this study, any semen demonstrated to have round cells would undergo Papanicolaou staining. A portion of the remaining semen, which would typically be discarded, will be sent for microbiome analysis. Secondly, as part of routine care, fertility patients may be started on medications to increase endogenous testosterone (i.e.: clomiphene citrate, anastrozole, etc). Participants started on medications will also be asked to submit a rectal swab for gut microbiome analysis. Routine care is to monitor the hormonal and testicular response with periodic endocrine blood panels and semen analyses; rectal swabs will be requested at these follow-up intervals also. The control group for both hypotheses will be men with clinical infertility with normal semen analyses and hormone profiles.
Epigenetic Safety of Assisted Reproductive Technology
InfertilityThe primary purpose of the study is to investigate the relationship between different protocols of assisted reproductive technology and the epigenetic safety of the offspring. Different interventions of assisted reproductive technology include controlled ovarian hyperstimulation (COH), in vitro embryo culture, in vitro fertilization(IVF), intracytoplasmic sperm injection(ICSI), frozen-thawed embryo transfer(FET), preimplantation genetic testing(PGT). The investigators are also interested in the relationship between pregnancy outcomes in ART or natural conception and environmental, nutritional and lifestyle factors.
The Evaluation of the Effect of Microfluidic Sperm Sorting Chip 'Labs-on-a-chip' on IVF Success...
Male InfertilityInfertility1 moreMicrofluidic chips are one of the methods of sperm separation to eliminate DNA fragmentation in sperm. It is thought that the separation of sperm by centrifugation in the classical gradient density (Percoll) method used in sperm separation in IVF (in vitro fertilization) laboratories leads to the increase of reactive oxygen radicals in sperm and this leads to sperm DNA fragmentation. Studies comparing Percoll and microfluidic chip method in terms of sperm, embryo quality and pregnancy rates are limited. In this context, it is aimed to investigate the effect of Percoll or Microfluidic Chip Technology on the quality of sperms and embryos obtained with these sperms and their pregnancy rates prospectively.
Is it Safe to do Endometrial Injury in the Same ICSI Cycle: A Randomized Controlled Trial
InfertilityEndometrial injury is one of the interventions suggested to improve the endometrial receptivity by enhancing the decidualization process, and so increasing the pregnancy rate
Hysteroscopic Septoplasty by Different Modalities
Septate UterusRecurrent Pregnancy Loss1 moreThe goal of this clinical trial is to compare in participant population ( women with uterine septum meeting the inclusion criteria) hysteroscopic septoplasty by resectoscope compared to hysteroscopic septoplasty with scissors. The main questions to answer are: Is there a difference in operative time ? Is there a difference in fluid used and fluid deficit? Is there a difference in complications? Is there a difference in reproductive outcome? Researchers will compare the 2 different techniques to see if there is any difference in operative outcome ( operative time, fluid used and deficit, need for second intervention, and operative and postoperative complications) and reproductive outcome.
Responsive Web-based Roadmap (InT-mAp) in Infertility Treatment
InfertilityFemale3 moreInfertility affects approximately 48 million couples and 186 million individuals globally, and it has biological, psychosocial, and economic problems in couples. It is a vital global reproductive health problem that has burdens and affects not only families but also society and the state. Studies indicate that many situations experienced during the infertility treatment process negatively affect the treatment results, and the anxiety of individuals receiving treatment, especially women, is high. The previous literature reports that during the infertility treatment process, women experience a decrease in their anxiety and self-confidence about drug administration, they have doubts about the dose, administration, and time of drugs, and the rate of mistakes made regarding drug administration is too high to be ignored. Such cases may lead to cycle cancellations in infertility treatment, interrupting the treatment, adversely affecting the success of the treatment, and thus exposing the couple to more than one treatment trial. The interruption of the treatment with the cycle cancellation, the increase in the number of treatment attempts, the repetitions cause the woman to be exposed to a higher amount of drug, the cost to increase with each treatment trial, an increase in the economic burden of the couples, and an increase in the financial burden for the country. In addition to these physical and economic burdens, feelings such as anxiety, concern, hopelessness, and depression increase in couples, and they may eventually experience burnout. In order to improve the care of infertile individuals, it is clearly stated in the literature that couples need open communication channels with health care professionals, obtaining qualified information, instilling realistic hope, empowerment, accessibility of care services, and they have unmet and high-quality care needs. The increase in the use and use of web-based education services in the globalizing world gives us hope in providing a solution to this issue. This project was mainly designed to answer the question of "Is the responsive web-based roadmap (InT-mAp) developed in solving the problems encountered in drug administration, treatment success and reducing anxiety in infertile women treated with Assisted Reproductive Techniques (ART)?" With InT-mAp, which investigators will develop using web-based education technology, which is a distance education method in this age of technology; investigators aimed to reduce/reduce the margin of error in ART treatment-drug practices, to contribute positively to the treatment process, and to reduce the social, economic and psychological burdens by reducing the anxiety level of individuals in this process. Besides, the InT-mAp, which will be developed to meet individuals' education and counseling needs for general infertility issues and the treatment process, will reduce the workload of healthcare professionals working in this field and make a positive contribution to drug administration consultancy. With this study, investigators aimed to provide participants with time-saving, individualized care, to reach the right information whenever they want, regardless of time and place, on every subject they need in the field of infertility. Investigators predict that sufficient follicle development, healthy oocytes and pregnancy can be achieved by creating awareness in infertile women and minimizing the conditions that may adversely affect the treatment process and results. Contributing to the health and economic indicators of the country by reducing cycle cancellations and reducing costs are among our important goals. The most important features that make the project unique are the absence of online support and a sensitive web-based training platform, where the infertility treatment process in Turkey can be followed in detail by the users, and individualized care and training needs are met.
Frozen Embryo Transfer in PCOS Patients
InfertilityPolycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) is condition characterized by being complex, familial and polygenetic metabolic condition with heterogeneous involvement of several genes in the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis. PCOS is the most incident endocrine-metabolic syndrome that is characterized by hyperandrogenemia, menstrual irregularities, and/or small cysts in one or both ovaries and could be considered as the main cause of female infertility. Assisted reproductive technologies (ART) were defined by the American Center for Disease Control as any fertility-related treatments where eggs or embryos are manipulated. In vitro fertilization involves the transfer of fresh embryos, however, the freeze-all strategy that entails cryopreservation of all embryos to be transferred subsequently in un-stimulated cycle to guard against the negative effects of controlled ovarian stimulation on the endometrium and to minimize the risk of ovarian hyper-stimulation syndrome. Intracytroplasmatic sperm injection (ICSI) is a common procedure used to improve reproductive results, even among couples without male factor infertility. However, there are several points of controversy in the fields of ART traditionally, multiple embryo transfer strategy was used to increase the chance for getting a baby, however, multiple pregnancy is a common complication for this strategy with subsequent adverse fetal, maternal and neonatal outcomes. Also, the developmental stage of embryos at time of transfer; cleavage versus blastocyst was a matter of debit, but giving the chance for in-vitro maturation to the stage of blastocyst increased the possibility of getting good quality embryo to be transferred. However, the exaggeration of prolongation of the in-vitro duration appeared as a trend, but recent studies found no advantages for transfer of D7 or D6 blastocyst over D5 blastocyst transfer (BT).
Effect of Estradiol Pretreatment on Antagonist ICSI Cycles
Female InfertilityDepended on the hypothesis that growth asynchrony of antral follicles is a consequence of the gradual follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) elevation that occurs during the late luteal phase, the aim of this work is to study the effect of estradiol pretreatment on follicular synchronization and intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) outcome in antagonist cycles
Impact of Vaginal Microbiome on Vaginal Absorption of Exogenous Progesterone: a Pilot Study.
InfertilityFemaleIs already demonstrated that around 30% of patients undergoing an artificial cycle with vaginal progesterone do not reach a minimum threshold value of serum progesterone levels on the day of embryo transfer. Women with serum progesterone levels below this threshold have 20% lower ongoing pregnancy and live birth rates, decreasing their chances of success. However, the cause of this high heterogeneity in exogenous vaginal progesterone absorption among our patients remains unknown. It has been suggested that vaginal microbiome, and vaginal pH (due to its impact in microbiota growth), may explain the differences in vaginal progesterone absorption. The aim of the present pilot study is to assess if certain vaginal conditions, such as its microbiome status or its pH level, might affect vaginal progesterone absorption (measured by serum progesterone levels) and, in turn, the chances of success. In order to evaluate it, a prospective cohort unicentric study will be conducted in IVI RMA Valencia (Spain). Infertile patients undergoing an embryo transfer in the context of an artificial cycle when using vaginal progesterone will be recruited. Serum progesterone and estradiol levels, microbiome genetic analysis in vaginal samples and vaginal pH will be measured both on the embryo transfer-scheduling day and on the embryo transfer day.