Table 1. The baseline characteristics of the participants.
| Control | Sham AA | AA | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Items | (n = 102) | (n = 102) | (n = 101) |
| Ages (years) | 30.95 ± 4.78 | 30.87 ± 4.12 | 31.65 ± 4.30 |
| BMI (kg/m2) | 23.87 ± 6.14 | 21.01 ± 4.25 | 22.08 ± 3.55 |
| Duration of infertility (year) | 4.97 ± 4.17 | 4.16 ± 3.21 | 5.19 ± 3.39 |
| Day-3 LH | 5.17 ± 2.64 | 4.74 ± 2.55 | 5.01 ± 2.84 |
| Day-3 FSH (nmol/L) | 6.13 ± 2.45 | 6.89 ± 2.03 | 6.80 ± 2.42 |
| Day-3 TT(pmol/L) | 1.45 ± 0.14 | 1.31 ± 0.07 | 1.20 ± 0.02 |
| Day-3 E2(pmol/L) | 141.18 ± 68.02 | 149.27 ± 59.96 | 135.89 ± 70.92 |
| Cycle length (days) | 32.90 ± 9.02 | 33.09 ± 8.97 | 32.72 ± 7.99 |
| rFSH administered (IU) | 2245.18 ± 600.97 | 2090.75 ± 644.29 | 2117.32 ± 849.71 |
| Induction length (days) | 9.61 ± 1.87 | 9.98 ± 2.08 | 9.78 ± 2.06 |
| Number of oocytes | 14.80 ± 7.45 | 15.19 ± 6.89 | 14.97 ± 6.31 |
| Number of follicles >14 mm | 11.59 ± 6.50 | 12.42 ± 6.72 | 12.15 ± 4.98 |
| Fertilization rate | 1078/1510 (71.39%) | 1092/1549 (70.50%) | 1090/1512 (72.09%) |
| Embryo cleavage rate | 1052/1078 (97.59%) | 1059/1092 (96.98%) | 1054/1090 (96.70%) |
| Good-quality embryo rate | 719/1078 (66.70%) | 742/1092 (67.95%) | 718/1090 (65.87%) |
| Embryos transferred per cycle | 2.08 ± 0.66 | 2.04 ± 0.63 | 1.98 ± 0.54 |
| Education level | |||
| High | 26/102 (25.49%) | 29/102 (28.43%) | 27/101 (26.73%) |
| Medium | 32/102 (31.37%) | 33/102 (32.35%) | 30/101 (29.70%) |
| Low | 44/102 (43.14%) | 40/102 (39.22%) | 44/101 (43.56%) |
| Living Area | |||
| City | 62/102 (61.39%) | 61/102(59.80%) | 59/101 (58.42%) |
| Urban | 4/102 (3.92%) | 5/102 (4.90%) | 4/101 (3.96%) |
| Country | 36/102 (35.29%) | 36/102(35.29%) | 38/101 (37.62%) |
| Employment Type | |||
| Full-time | 56/102 (54.90%) | 53/102 (51.96%) | 54/101 (53.47%) |
| Part-time | 13/102 (12.75%) | 16/102 (15.69%) | 16/101 (15.84%) |
| Non-employment | 33/102 (32.35%) | 33/102 (32.35%) | 31/101 (30.69%) |
Note: Data were shown as mean ± S.D. *P<0.05, compared with the Control group; #P<0.05 compared with Sham AA group (For Chi-Square tests among three groups, the adjusted significance level for each comparison was set at P = 0.017(0.05/3) to give a significance level of 0.05 over all three tests: *P<0.017, compared with the Control group; #P<0.017 compared with Sham AA group). AA: auricular acupressure; BMI: body mass index; Day-3: the 3rd day of spontaneous menstrual cycle; LH: luteinizing hormone; FSH: follicle stimulating hormone; TT: total testosterone; E2: estradiol; r-FSH: recombinant FSH.