Table 1.
Stimulation, embryological and clinical outcomes of SERC(+) cycles and SERC(−) cycles
| SERC(+) cycles | SERC(−) cycles | P value | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Patients | 212 | 1,946 | |
| Cycles | 252 | 3,326 | |
| Average age | 38.2 ± 4.6 | 38.2 ± 4.7 | NS |
| Basal LH (mIU/ml) | 3.5 ± 2.6 | 3.4 ± 2.3 | NS |
| Basal FSH (mIU/ml) | 6.5 ± 4.0 | 6.2 ± 3.8 | NS |
| Basal estradiol (pg/ml) | 15.7 ± 12.5 | 16.1 ± 12.8 | NS |
| Basal progesterone (ng/ml) | 0.4 ± 0.3 | 0.4 ± 0.3 | NS |
| Initial dose of gonadotrophins (IU/ml) | 264.0 ± 94.6 | 262.6 ± 114.2 | NS |
| Total dose of gonadotrophins (IU/ml) | 2353.5 ± 890.6 | 2079.2 ± 995.2 | P < 0.05 |
| Duration of stimulation (days) | 10.3 ± 2.1 | 9.7 ± 2.6 | P < 0.05 |
| Estradiol levels at hCG-trigger | 1282.2 ± 920.3 | 1059.0 ± 919.7 | P < 0.01 |
| The proportion of used stimulation protocol | |||
| GnRH antagonist | 120 (47.6 %) | 1,606 (48.3 %) | NS |
| Aromatase inhibitor + GnRH antagonist | 40 (15.9 %) | 620 (18.6 %) | NS |
| GnRHa long protocol | 46 (18.3 %) | 449 (13.5 %) | P < 0.05 |
| Ultra long protocol | 3 (1.2 %) | 16 (0.5 %) | NS |
| GnRHa short protocol | 27 (10.7 %) | 306 (9.2 %) | NS |
| Clomiphen citrate | 6 (2.4 %) | 150 (4.5 %) | NS |
| Natural | 8 (3.2 %) | 147 (4.4 %) | NS |
| Other(except of upper) | 2 (0.8 %) | 32 (1.0 %) | NS |
| No. of retrieved COCs | 1833 | 17976 | |
| No. of MII oocytes | 1,557 | 14,000 | |
| Mean no. COC/cycle | 7.3 ± 6.1 | 5.4 ± 5.0 | NS |
| Mean no, MII oocytes /cycle | 6.2 ± 5.0 | 4.2 ± 4.0 | NS |
| Fertilization (%) | 1,109/1,557 (71.2 %) | 9,848/14,000 (70.3 %) | NS |
| Blastulation (%)a | 380/884 (43.0 %) | 2,933/6,880 (42.6 %) | NS |
| Cycles with fresh ET (Day2 or Day3) |
150 | 2,147 | |
| No. of transferred embryos | 187 | 2,547 | |
| Implantation (%) | 31/187 (16.6 %) | 422/2,547 (16.6 %) | NS |
| Clinical pregnancy (%) | 30/150 (20.0 %) | 407/ 2,147 (17.8 %) | NS |
| Miscarriage (%) | 10/30 (30.3 %) | 123/407 (30.2 %) | NS |
| Live-birth rate (%) | 20b/150 (13.3 %) | 284/2,147 (13.2 %)c | NS |
| Malformation rate (%) | 0/20 (0 %) | 7/206 (3.4 %)d | NS |
SERC smooth endoplasmic reticulum clusters. COC cumulus oocyte complex. MII metaphase second meiosis NS not significant
aBlastulation rate is expressed as no. of blastocysts per all developed blastocyst-stage embryos that remained supernumerary embryos after being used for transfer at early stage
bTwo of 20 were produced from SERC(+) MII oocytes (to see Table 3)
c284 is not no. of live-birth babies because it included the no. of ongoing pregnancies
dThe number 206 indicates the no. babies in 284 ongoing or completed pregnancies