title: The transfer point is a novel measure of embryo placement.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To study the relationship between IVF-ET pregnancy outcomes and measures of embryo placement.
  
  
  METHODS
  Case-control study.
  
  
  METHODS
  Tertiary care center.
  
  
  METHODS
  Twenty-three patients who underwent two ultrasonography-guided ETs, of which one resulted in a clinical pregnancy and the other did not.
  
  
  METHODS
  Point of embryo placement normalized to the endometrial cavity length (the transfer point), distance from the point of embryo placement to the uterine fundus, time required for ET, contact with the uterine fundus, and evidence of trauma. Videotaped ETs were quantitatively analyzed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  From February 1, 2000, to March 31, 2001, videotaped ETs from 23 pairs of pregnant and nonpregnant cycles were identified. Embryo placement was more shallow in pregnancy cycles than in nonpregnancy cycles. The groups did not differ in the absolute distance of embryo placement to the fundus, ovarian stimulation, or other features of the ET.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The transfer point may serve as a better marker of embryo position than does the absolute distance to the uterine fundus.
authors.affiliation: Women and Infants' Hospital of Rhode Island, Brown Medical School Division of Biology and Medicine, Providence, Rhode Island 02905, USA. dfrankfu@wihri.org
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Frankfurter
authors.forename: Celso P
authors.initials: CP
authors.lastname: Silva
authors.forename: Francisco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Mota
authors.forename: James B
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Trimarchi
authors.forename: David L
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: Keefe
mesh_terms: D016022:Case-Control Studies; D010064:Embryo Implantation; D004624:Embryo Transfer; D005260:Female; D005307:Fertilization in Vitro / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D011247:Pregnancy; D012189:Retrospective Studies