Endometrium development patterns and BMI groups among in vitro fertilization patients; prognostic aspects

Introduction

The impact of the obesity pandemic on female reproductive capability is a factor that needs to be investigated. In addition, the link between endometrial thickness and in vitro fertilization (IVF) outcomes is contentious.

Goal

Our goal was to analyze the association among endometrium development, hormone levels, embryo quality, clinical pregnancy, anamnestic parameters, and body mass index (BMI) in women receiving IVF treatment.

Patients and methods

537 participants undergoing IVF/ICSI cycles with successful oocyte retrieval were enrolled. Subjects were divided into four BMI based groups: underweight (UW; n=32), normal weight (NW; n=324), overweight (OW; n= 115), obesity (OB; n=66). Anthropometric and anamnestic parameters, characteristics of stimulation, endometrial thickness on the day of hCG injection, at puncture, at embryo transfer, FSH, LH, AMH, partner's age and the semen analysis indicators, embryo quality, clinical pregnancy, were recorded and analyzed. Support Vector Machine (SVM) was built to predict potential pregnancies based on medical data using 22 dimensions.

Results

In accordance with BMI categories, when examining pregnant/non-pregnant division, the average age of pregnant women was significantly lower in the UW (30.9 ± 4.48 vs. 35.3 ± 5.49 years, p=0.022), NW (34.2 ± 4.25 vs. 36.3 ± 4.84 years, p<0.001), and OW (33.8 ± 4.89 vs. 36.3 ± 5.31 years, p=0.009) groups. Considering FSH, LH, and AMH levels in each BMI category, a statistically significant difference was observed only in the NW category FSH was significantly lower (7.8 ± 2.99 vs. 8.6 ± 3.50 IU/L, p=0.032) and AMH (2.87 ± 2.40 vs. 2.28 ± 2.01 pmol/L, p=0.021) was higher in pregnant women. There were no further statistically significant differences observed between the pregnant and non-pregnant groups across any BMI categories, especially concerning endometrial development. Surprisingly, BMI and weight correlated negatively with FSH (r=-0.252, p<0.001; r=-0.206, p<0.001, respectively) and LH (r= -0.213, p<0.001; r= -0.195, p<0.001) in the whole population. SVM model average accuracy on predictions was 61.71%.

Discussion

A convincing correlation between endometrial thickness development and patients' BMI could not be substantiated. However, FSH and LH levels exhibited a surprising decreasing trend with increasing BMI, supporting the evolutionary selective role of nutritional status. Our SVM model outperforms previous models; however, to confidently predict the outcome of embryo transfer, further optimization is necessary.

Obesity-Related Hypogonadism in Women

Obesity-related hypogonadotropic hypogonadism is a well-characterized condition in men (termed male obesity-related secondary hypogonadism; MOSH); however, an equivalent condition has not been as clearly described in women. The prevalence of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is known to increase with obesity, but PCOS is more typically characterized by increased gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) (and by proxy luteinizing hormone; LH) pulsatility, rather than by the reduced gonadotropin levels observed in MOSH. Notably, LH levels and LH pulse amplitude are reduced with obesity, both in women with and without PCOS, suggesting that an obesity-related secondary hypogonadism may also exist in women akin to MOSH in men. Herein, we examine the evidence for the existence of a putative non-PCOS "female obesity-related secondary hypogonadism" (FOSH). We précis possible underlying mechanisms for the occurrence of hypogonadism in this context and consider how such mechanisms differ from MOSH in men, and from PCOS in women without obesity. In this review, we consider relevant etiological factors that are altered in obesity and that could impact on GnRH pulsatility to ascertain whether they could contribute to obesity-related secondary hypogonadism including: anti-Müllerian hormone, androgen, insulin, fatty acid, adiponectin, and leptin. More precise phenotyping of hypogonadism in women with obesity could provide further validation for non-PCOS FOSH and preface the ability to define/investigate such a condition.

Normative range of various serum hormonal parameters among Indian women of reproductive age: ICMR-PCOS task force study outcome

Background

The hormonal profile varies considerably with age, gender, ethnicity, diet or physiological state of an individual. Limited population-specific studies have studied the variations in hormonal parameters among apparently healthy women. We aimed to analyse the biological reference interval for various hormonal parameters in the reproductive-aged healthy Indian women.

Methods

Out of 3877 participants that were clinically evaluated, 1441 subjects were subjected to laboratory investigations. All participants underwent a detailed clinical, biochemical and hormonal profiling. The hormone analysis was carried out at a single centre using a uniform methodology. Among the participants evaluated for biochemical and hormonal parameters, subjects that presented any abnormal profile or had incomplete investigations (n = 593) were excluded for further analysis.

Findings

The mean age (±SD) of the subjects retained in the final analysis (n = 848) was 29.9 (±6.3) years. In the present study, the biological reference interval (2.5th-97.5th centile) observed were: serum T4: μg/dL (5.23-12.31), TSH: μg/mL (0.52-4.16) and serum prolactin: ng/mL (5.13-37.35), LH: mIU/mL (2.75-20.68), FSH: mIU/mL 2.59-15.12), serum total testosterone: ng/mL (0.06-0.68), fasting insulin: mIU/mL (1.92-39.72), morning cortisol: μg/dL (4.71-19.64), DHEAS:μg/dL (50.61-342.6) and SHBG: nmol/L (21.37-117.54). Unlike T4, TSH, LH, and E2, the biological reference interval for prolactin, FSH, testosterone, C-peptide insulin and DHEAS varied when the subjects were stratified by age (p < 0.05). The comparative analysis showed marginal differences in the normative ranges for the hormones analysed among different populations.

Interpretation

Our first large composite data on hormonal measures will benefit future endeavours to define biological reference intervals in reproductive-aged Indian women.

Funding

The study was financially supported by the grant-in-aid from ICMR vide file No:5/7/13337/2015-RBMH.

Factors Associated with Poor Ovarian Reserve in Young Infertile Women: A Hospital-based Cohort Study

Background

In practice, we encounter many young infertile women with poor ovarian reserve though ovarian reserve starts to decline after 35 years of age. One of the established risk factors for poor ovarian reserve in young women is endometriosis. There are other conditions that are reported to be associated which require further research.

Aims

We aimed to study the prevalence of poor ovarian reserve and to find out the associated factors in women who are <35 years of age.

Settings and Design

This was a prospective observational cohort study conducted in a tertiary care setting.

Materials and Methods

Women aged more than 21 years and <35 years without Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) or ovarian dysgenesis with normal male factor were included after ethical approval. The sample size was 166 and serum anti-Mullerian hormone (AMH) was estimated by immunoenzymatic assay and expressed in ng/ml. AMH ≤0.99 ng/ml was considered poor ovarian reserve. Apart from established risk factors, the proposed risk factors studied were age 31-35 years, presence of medical disorders, gynaecological pathology and history of repeated ovulation induction (OI).

Statistical Analysis Used

Data were analysed by SPSS version 25. Chi-square test and Fisher's exact test were used to compare the variables between normal ovarian reserve and poor ovarian reserve. Risk estimation was done by logistic regression and was expressed in odds ratio (OR).

Results

Poor ovarian reserve was diagnosed in 40% of this cohort, and 62% were between 31 and 35 years. After adjusting for age >30 years, women with endometrioma, hypothyroidism and prior history of ≥3 cycles of OI were found to be having poor ovarian reserve (OR was 5.7, 2.5 and 2.3, respectively).

Conclusion

Poor ovarian reserve was present in 40% of young women, and significantly associated factors were hypothyroidism and history of repeated multiple OI. This could be a confounder for other underlying mechanisms driving early exhaustion of ovarian reserve in certain young women. Hence, along with established risk factors, these women should undergo AMH testing irrespective of age.

Impact of Obesity on Anti-Mullerian Hormone (AMH) Levels in Women of Reproductive Age

Obesity negatively impacts reproductive health, including ovarian function. Obesity has been posited to alter Anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) production. Understanding biological factors that could impact AMH levels is necessary given the increasing use of AMH for predicting reproductive health outcomes in response to controlled ovarian stimulation, diagnosing ovulatory disorders, onset of menopause, and natural conception. In this narrative review, we evaluated the impact of obesity on AMH levels in healthy, regularly cycling reproductive-age women (18-48 years). Thirteen studies (n = 1214 women; (811, non-obese (body mass index; BMI < 30 kg/m2); 403, obese (BMI > 30 kg/m2))) were included, of which five reported decreased AMH levels with obesity, whereas eight showed comparable AMH levels between groups. Inclusion of women with higher obesity classes (Class 3 versus Class 1) may have been a factor in studies reporting lower AMH levels. Together, studies reporting AMH levels in otherwise healthy women remain limited by small sample sizes, cross-sectional designs, and lack of representation across the entire adiposity spectrum. Ultimately, the degree to which obesity may negatively impact AMH levels, and possibly ovarian reserve, in otherwise healthy women with regular menstrual cycles should be deemed uncertain at this time. This conclusion is prudent considering that the biological basis for an impact of obesity on AMH production is unknown.

The status and comparison of ovarian reserve between fertile and infertile healthy Chinese women of reproductive age

ABSTRACT

We aimed to investigate ovarian reserve status, and explore differences in ovarian reserve between fertile and infertile healthy Chinese women of reproductive age.We recruited 442 fertile women aged 23 to 49 years (mean: 35.22 ± 4.91 years) as subjects, and 196 infertile women aged 23 to 46 years (mean: 32.34 ± 4.34 years) as controls. For all participants, a number of parameters were tested on days 2 to 4 of a spontaneous cycle, including basal serum follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), estradiol (E2), luteinizing hormone (LH), total testosterone, anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH), ovarian response prediction index (ORPI), and antral follicle count (AFC).There were significant differences in terms of AFC, serum AMH levels, and ORPI among subject subgroups (10.58 ± 5.80; 2.533 ± 2.146 ng/mL; 1.28 ± 1.87; respectively), and among control subgroups (12.44 ± 5.69; 3.189 ± 2.551 ng/mL; 1.88 ± 2.68; respectively) (P < .01 for all). For both subjects and controls, AFC, AMH levels, and ORPI decreased gradually with increasing age, and presented with similar age-related trends; there were positive correlations between AMH and AFC (P < .001), and negative correlations between age and AFC, AMH, ORPI (P < .05 for all). There was a significant difference in age (P < .001), serum E2 (P < .01), and AMH (P < .01) levels between subjects and controls; however, when controlling for confounding factors (age, body mass index, total testosterone, and LH), we found no differences between the 2 groups with regards to the serum levels of AMH, FSH, E2, and AFC (P > .05 for all). Moreover, receiver operating characteristic curve analysis indicated that the significant variables of subjects and controls for evaluating ovarian reserve included age, AMH and ORPI, and ORPI was more valuable than other variables.A diminished ovarian reserve was one of the manifestations caused by female aging. When confounding factors were controlled for, we found no differences in ovarian reserve when compared between fertile and infertile women, and no correlation with infertility.