Progestin Primed Double Stimulation Protocol Versus Flexible GnRH Antagonist Protocol in Poor Responders

Summary

The worldwide prevalence of primary and secondary infertility is estimated at \~2% and 10.5%, respectively, among women aged 20-44 years and attempting to conceive. Poor ovarian responders (PORs) involve 9-24% of patients undergoing in-vitro fertilization (IVF). proper tailoring of the ovarian stimulation protocol in order to maximize the number of oocytes collected represents a crucial step for them to eventually conceive. Recent evidence indicates that in the same menstrual cycle, there are multiple follicular recruitment waves. This coincides with the theory that folliculogenesis occurs in a wave-like fashion. Thus, within a single menstrual cycle, there can theoretically be multiple opportunities for a clinician to collect oocytes, as opposed to the conventional single cohort of antral follicles during the follicular phase. Utilizing this concept, clinicians have been attempting to retrieve oocytes from poor responders using both the follicular-phase stimulation (FPS) and the luteal-phase stimulation (LPS) protocols to increase the number of oocytes collected shorter within shorter period of time. By increasing the number of the retrieved oocytes collected, a better clinical can be assured since there is a clear relationship between the number of oocytes collected and live birth rates across all female age groups. which protocol is the most effective remains controversial and the efficacy of PPOS in POR compared with that of conventional protocols is unclear.

Timeline

Start

2020-09-01

Primary completion

2021-03-01

Completion

2021-09-01

Publications

• Background Mascarenhas MN, Flaxman SR, Boerma T, Vanderpoel S, Stevens GA. National, regional, and global trends in infertility prevalence since 1990: a systematic analysis of 277 health surveys. PLoS Med. 2012;9(12):e1001356. doi: 10.1371/journal.pmed.1001356. Epub 2012 Dec 18.
• Background Briggs R, Kovacs G, MacLachlan V, Motteram C, Baker HW. Can you ever collect too many oocytes? Hum Reprod. 2015 Jan;30(1):81-7. doi: 10.1093/humrep/deu272. Epub 2014 Oct 31.
• Background Drakopoulos P, Blockeel C, Stoop D, Camus M, de Vos M, Tournaye H, Polyzos NP. Conventional ovarian stimulation and single embryo transfer for IVF/ICSI. How many oocytes do we need to maximize cumulative live birth rates after utilization of all fresh and frozen embryos? Hum Reprod. 2016 Feb;31(2):370-6. doi: 10.1093/humrep/dev316. Epub 2016 Jan 2.
• Background Baerwald AR, Adams GP, Pierson RA. Ovarian antral folliculogenesis during the human menstrual cycle: a review. Hum Reprod Update. 2012 Jan-Feb;18(1):73-91. doi: 10.1093/humupd/dmr039. Epub 2011 Nov 8.
• Background Vanden Brink H, Chizen D, Hale G, Baerwald A. Age-related changes in major ovarian follicular wave dynamics during the human menstrual cycle. Menopause. 2013 Dec;20(12):1243-54. doi: 10.1097/GME.0b013e31828cfb62.
• Background Kuang Y, Chen Q, Hong Q, Lyu Q, Ai A, Fu Y, Shoham Z. Double stimulations during the follicular and luteal phases of poor responders in IVF/ICSI programmes (Shanghai protocol). Reprod Biomed Online. 2014 Dec;29(6):684-91. doi: 10.1016/j.rbmo.2014.08.009. Epub 2014 Sep 6.
• Background Zhang J. Luteal phase ovarian stimulation following oocyte retrieval: is it helpful for poor responders? Reprod Biol Endocrinol. 2015 Jul 25;13:76. doi: 10.1186/s12958-015-0076-2.
• Background Liu C, Jiang H, Zhang W, Yin H. Double ovarian stimulation during the follicular and luteal phase in women >/=38 years: a retrospective case-control study. Reprod Biomed Online. 2017 Dec;35(6):678-684. doi: 10.1016/j.rbmo.2017.08.019. Epub 2017 Aug 24.
• Background Zhang Q, Guo XM, Li Y. Implantation rates subsequent to the transfer of embryos produced at different phases during double stimulation of poor ovarian responders. Reprod Fertil Dev. 2017 Jun;29(6):1178-1183. doi: 10.1071/RD16020.
• Background Sunkara SK, Rittenberg V, Raine-Fenning N, Bhattacharya S, Zamora J, Coomarasamy A. Association between the number of eggs and live birth in IVF treatment: an analysis of 400 135 treatment cycles. Hum Reprod. 2011 Jul;26(7):1768-74. doi: 10.1093/humrep/der106. Epub 2011 May 10.
• Background Wang N, Wang Y, Chen Q, Dong J, Tian H, Fu Y, Ai A, Lyu Q, Kuang Y. Luteal-phase ovarian stimulation vs conventional ovarian stimulation in patients with normal ovarian reserve treated for IVF: a large retrospective cohort study. Clin Endocrinol (Oxf). 2016 May;84(5):720-8. doi: 10.1111/cen.12983. Epub 2015 Dec 21.
• Background McNatty KP, Hillier SG, van den Boogaard AM, Trimbos-Kemper TC, Reichert LE Jr, van Hall EV. Follicular development during the luteal phase of the human menstrual cycle. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 1983 May;56(5):1022-31. doi: 10.1210/jcem-56-5-1022.
• Background Moffat R, Pirtea P, Gayet V, Wolf JP, Chapron C, de Ziegler D. Dual ovarian stimulation is a new viable option for enhancing the oocyte yield when the time for assisted reproductive technnology is limited. Reprod Biomed Online. 2014 Dec;29(6):659-61. doi: 10.1016/j.rbmo.2014.08.010. Epub 2014 Sep 4.
• Background Kuang Y, Chen Q, Fu Y, Wang Y, Hong Q, Lyu Q, Ai A, Shoham Z. Medroxyprogesterone acetate is an effective oral alternative for preventing premature luteinizing hormone surges in women undergoing controlled ovarian hyperstimulation for in vitro fertilization. Fertil Steril. 2015 Jul;104(1):62-70.e3. doi: 10.1016/j.fertnstert.2015.03.022. Epub 2015 May 5.
• Background Ferraretti AP, La Marca A, Fauser BC, Tarlatzis B, Nargund G, Gianaroli L; ESHRE working group on Poor Ovarian Response Definition. ESHRE consensus on the definition of 'poor response' to ovarian stimulation for in vitro fertilization: the Bologna criteria. Hum Reprod. 2011 Jul;26(7):1616-24. doi: 10.1093/humrep/der092. Epub 2011 Apr 19.

Drugs

Indications