Table 1.
Characteristics of included studies in the systematic review and meta-analysis.
| Author Year | Country | Study design | Population | Exposure, dose, and duration | Timing of antibiotics | Indications/Exposi ng factor | Comparator | Outcomes | Certainty |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pregnancy | |||||||||
| Harrison e t al 197524 | UK | RCT | Women with primary infertility | Doxycycline 100 mg. per day for twenty- eight days | 1 year | Primary infertility anatomical factors excluded | Placebo and no treatment | Conception rate | Moderate |
| Schaumburg, 198933 | Denmark | Cohort | Female pharmacy assistants | Occupational antibiotics exposure (not specified type and dose) | 1 year | Occupation (worked in antibiotics station) | Same occupation with different workstation | Pregnancy rate | High |
| Grodstein et al., 199234 | USA | Case- control | Women who attended infertility clinics and pregnant women | Antibiotics (not specified type, used it for 6 months) | 6 months | NR | Not used any antibiotics | Clinical pregnancy rate | High |
| Peikrishvili et al., 200435 | France | RCT | Women for the IVF | Amoxicillin (1 g) + Clavulanic acid (125 mg) for 6 days | 6 days from ovum pickup | IVF | No antibiotics | Implantation rate | Moderate |
| Brook et al., 200632 | UK | RCT | Patients for IVF | Co-amoxiclav 750 mg for two different days | Before embryo transfer | NR | Not used any antibiotics | Clinical pregnancy rate and live birth | Moderate |
| Cicinelli et al., 201836 | Italy | Retrospective study | Women with unexplained infertility | Antibiotics (dose and type not specified) for a maximum of 3 cycles of menstruation | 1 year | Chronic endometriosis | Not used any antibiotics | Successful pregnancy | Moderate |
| Eskew et al., 202037 | USA | Prospective exploratory study | Subfertile women | Single dose prophylactic azithromycin | Prior to IVF | IVF | No azithromycin | FR | Moderate |
| Crowe et al., 20216 | USA/Cana da | Cohort | Female pregnancy planners | Penicillins, macrolides, nitrofurantoin, nitroimidazole, cephalosporins, sulfonamides, quinolones, tetracyclines or lincosamides (with not specified doses and duration) | 4 weeks | Infection | Not used any antibiotics | Pregnancy status | Moderate |
| Shao 202328 | China | Case- control | Women with and without infertility | Sulfonamides, tetracyclines, quinoxalines, and veterinary antibiotics (with not specified doses and duration) | 1 year | NR | Not used any antibiotics | Prolonged infertility | Moderate |
| Mikkelsen et al., 202321 | Denmark | Prospective cohort | Healthy females | Penicillins, sulfonamides, or macrolides (any dose by prescription, not specified duration) | 1 year | NR | Not used any antibiotics | FR | High |
| Duan et al., 202338 | China | Prospective cohort study | Patients with infertility underwent IVF | Antibiotics type dose and duration not specified. However, rather levels measured in urine | Before embryo transfer | Women treated with antibiotics for endometriosis | Women with no antibiotic treatment and endometriosis | Clinical pregnancy | High |
| Spontaneous miscarriage | |||||||||
| Peikrishvili et al., 200435 | France | RCT | Women for the IVF | Amoxicillin (1 g) + Clavulanic acid (125 mg) for 6 days | 6 days from ovum pickup | IVF | No antibiotics | Pregnancy loss rate | Moderate |
| Crowe et al., 20226 | USA/Canada | Cohort study | Female pregnancy planners | Penicillin, nitrofurantoin, cephalosporins, and macrolides (with not specified doses and duration) | 1 year | NR | No antibiotic use | SAB | Moderate |
| Duan et al. 202338 | China | Prospective cohort study | Patients with infertility underwent IVF/ICSI | Antibiotics type dose and duration not specified. However, rather levels measured from urine | Prior to embryo transfer | Endometriosis cured | No endometriosis | SAB | High |
| Gelder et al. 202339 | Netherlands | Cohort study | Females trying to conceive | Antibiotics type dose and duration not specified. | 4 weeks | Not specified | No antibiotic use | SAB | Moderate |
| A. Congenital malformation: | B. | ||||||||
| Andersen, TJ et al., 201340 | Denmark | Cohort study | Reproductive age women | Any dose of trimethoprim prescribed 12 weeks before conception | 12 weeks | Not specified | No- trimethoprim | Congenital malformation | High |
| Sun Y et al., 201431 | Denmark | case- time control | Babies of women in the cohort | Any dose of trimethoprim prescribed 1–3 months before pregnancy | 3 months | Not specified | Not used in 1–3 months pre-pregnancy | Congenital malformation | Moderate |
UK: United Kingdom; RCT: Randomized Controlled Trial; mg: milligram; USA: United States of America; NR: Not reported; FR: Fecundability Ratio; IVF/ICSI: In Vitro Fertilization/Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection.