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.

Association between sperm autoantibodies and enhanced embryo implantation rates during in vitro fertilization.

Clarke GN

Andrology Unit, Royal Women's Hospital, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. gary.clarke@rch.org.au

Previous investigations have demonstrated the propensity of strong IgA-class sperm autoantibodies to impede fertilization. However, because there has not been a general consensus on this issue, the aim of this retrospective analysis was to focus on the effects of different levels of IgA-class antibodies on each stage of the IVF procedure. This study has confirmed that high level IgA class antibodies significantly reduce fertilization rates but, unexpectedly, also has shown a very significant improvement in embryo implantation rates in patients with weak to moderate antibody levels. Interlaboratory prospective collaborative studies are being planned to test this preliminary observation more stringently.

Published 5 September 2006 in Fertil Steril, 86(3): 753-4.
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