title: Cycle outcome can be predicted by the growth profile of untransferred cleavage-stage embryos.
abstract: Excess embryos obtained from intracytoplasmic sperm injection cycles may be cultured and observed until day 5 if the couple receiving treatment do not want them to be cryopreserved. In order to investigate the correlation between blastocyst formation in extended culture and pregnancy outcome, 194 patients treated in two separate IVF units were examined retrospectively. The patients were separated into two groups: group 1 with at least one blastocyst formed in culture, and group 2 with no blastocyst formation. The pregnancy rates were 60.0% and 41.7% for groups 1 and 2, respectively. The pregnancy rate in group 1 was statistically significantly higher than in group 2 (P = 0.01). The results suggest that the developmental potential of embryos obtained from a single assisted reproduction treatment cycle may be similar and that blastocyst formation in vitro may help to predict the pregnancy outcome of that cycle.
authors.affiliation: Istanbul Ferticenter ART Center, Istanbul, Turkey. seda2410@yahoo.com
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yilmaz
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Kutlu
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Sofuoglu
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Delikara
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kolankaya
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Arici
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001755:Blastocyst / Q000502:physiology; D002970:Cleavage Stage, Ovum / Q000502:physiology*; D004624:Embryo Transfer; D005260:Female; D005307:Fertilization in Vitro; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011247:Pregnancy; D011256:Pregnancy Outcome; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D020554:Sperm Injections, Intracytoplasmic