Table 3.
Baseline patient characteristics, treatment variables, and IVF outcomes of the patients grouped according to the cut-off values for female age and DHEAS level predictive of clinical pregnancy (cutoffs are selected by ROC curve analysis).
| Age category (years) | <37.5 | ≥37.5 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| >5.7 | ≤5.7 | >5.7 | ≤5.7 | |
| DHEAS category (μmol/L) | Group 1 | Group 2 | Group 3 | Group 4 |
| (n = 24) | (n = 45) | (n = 9) | (n = 51) | |
| Patient characteristics | ||||
| Age (y) | 34.0 ± 2.7(3)(4) | 34.1 ± 1.8(3)(4) | 39.7 ± 1.7(1)(2) | 40.5 ± 1.9(1)(2) |
| BMI (kg/m2) | 23.5 ± 3.8 | 23.0 ± 3.3(3)(4) | 26.2 ± 5.0(2) | 24.5 ± 3.7(2) |
| AFC | 7.0 ± 4.0 | 7.4 ± 3.6 | 6.0 ± 3.0 | 5.8 ± 3.7 |
| AMH (pmol/L) | 3.2 ± 1.9 | 3.5 ± 1.8(4) | 2.3 ± 1.5 | 2.6 ± 1.6(2) |
| DHEAS (µmol/L) | 7.0 ± 0.7(2)(4) | 3.6 ± 1.2(1)(3) | 6.9 ± 0.9(2)(4) | 3.5 ± 1.4(1)(3) |
| FSH (IU/L) | 9.0 ± 2.9 | 9.6 ± 8.3 | 9.1 ± 4.1 | 10.3 ± 6.9 |
| LH (IU/L) | 4.3 ± 1.8 | 4.6 ± 2.6 | 3.9 ± 1.1 | 5.0 ± 2.2 |
| E 2 (pmol/L) | 192 ± 73 | 217 ± 103 | 248 ± 130 | 239 ± 153 |
| T (nmol/L) | 1.9 ± 0.6(2)(4) | 1.2 ± 0.5(1)(3) | 2.0 ± 1.9(2)(4) | 1.3 ± 0.6(1)(3) |
| Treatment variables | ||||
| Duration of stimulation (d) | 10.7 ± 1.3 | 10.3 ± 1.6 | 10.6 ± 3.0 | 10.7 ± 1.5 |
| Total gonadotrophins used (IU) | 3200 ± 392 | 2953 ± 643 | 3167 ± 901 | 3064 ± 633 |
| Number of ICSI cycles, % (n/N) | 73.9 (17/23) | 72.2 (26/36) | 71.4 (5/7) | 76.2 (32/42) |
| IVF outcomes | ||||
| Number of oocytes retrieved | 3.1 ± 1.4(4) | 3.2 ± 2.4(4) | 2.9 ± 1.7 | 2.0 ± 1.5(1)(2) |
| Number of oocytes eligible for fertilization | 2.5 ± 0.8(4) | 2.2 ± 1.1(4) | 2.1 | 1.6(1)(2) |
| Number of embryos transferred | 1.5 ± 1.1 | 1.3 ± 1.2 | 0.9 ± 1.1 | 1.0 ± 0.9 |
| Implantation rate per embryo transferred (%) | 32.4(2)(4) | 8.6(1)(4) | 12.5 | 3.8(1)(2) |
| Clinical pregnancy rate per cycle initiated (%) | 37.5(2)(4) | 8.9(1) | 11.1 | 2.0(1) |
Note: values are presented as mean ± SD. AFC: antral follicle count; AMH: anti-Müllerian hormone; BMI: body mass index Conversion formulas for the AMH, DHEAS, E 2, and T values in mass units are as follows: ng/mL = pmol/L: 7.14, μg/dL × 0.027 = μmol/L, pg/mL × 3.67 = pmol/L, and ng/dL × 0.0347 = mmol/L, respectively. Fisher's exact test, Chi-quadrat test, and Kruskal-Wallis test with post-hoc analysis according to Conover were used for between-group comparison where appropriate. Superscripted numbers in parentheses denote (1) P < 0.05 compared with Group 1; (2) P < 0.05 compared with Group 2; (3) P < 0.05 compared with Group 3; (4) P < 0.05 compared with Group 4.