Infertility Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Infertility, including details on male and female infertility, treatment, causes, pregnancy.

Laser versus mechanical assisted hatching: a prospective study of clinical outcomes.

Makrakis E, Angeli I, Agapitou K, Pappas K, Dafereras A, Pantos K

Center for Human Reproduction, Genesis Clinic, Athens, Greece. emakrakis@hotmail.com <emakrakis@hotmail.com>

OBJECTIVE: To compare clinical outcomes after laser or mechanical techniques of assisted hatching (AH) in women of advanced age undergoing IVF or intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI). DESIGN: Prospective randomized study. SETTING: Center for Human Reproduction, Genesis Clinic, Athens, Greece. PATIENTS: Three hundred and sixteen consenting women of advanced age (> or =39 years) with primary infertility undergoing IVF/ICSI programs and having available embryos for transfer on day 3. Patients were randomized into laser or mechanical AH of their transferred embryos. INTERVENTIONS: Controlled ovarian hyperstimulation, oocyte retrieval, IVF/ICSI, laser or mechanical AH, and embryo-transfer. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Implantation rate, clinical pregnancy rate, and viable pregnancy rate. RESULTS: The implantation rate was significantly higher in the laser AH group. Clinical and viable pregnancy rates were higher (but not significantly) in the laser AH group. CONCLUSIONS: Laser AH of embryos may result in better clinical outcomes when compared to the mechanical technique in women of advanced age undergoing IVF or ICSI.

Published 27 November 2006 in Fertil Steril, 86(6): 1596-600.
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