title: Should androgen supplementation be used for poor ovarian response in IVF?
abstract: Poor ovarian response is reported in 9-24% of IVF cycles. Several interventions have been proposed to improve the outcome, although evidence to support these has been scant. There has been interest in the use of adjuvant androgens in this context and a recent worldwide survey showed that nearly a quarter of IVF clinicians used dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) in poor responders. We examine the rationale for the use of adjuvant androgens and suggest that the current clinical uncertainty should be addressed by a randomized controlled trial of DHEA in poor responders.
authors.affiliation: Assisted Conception Unit, Guy's and St Thomas' Foundation Trust, King's College London, 11th Floor, Tower Wing, St Thomas' Street, London SE1 9RT, UK. sksunkara@hotmail.com
authors.forename: Sesh Kamal
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Sunkara
authors.forename: Arri
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Coomarasamy
authors.forename: Wiebke
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Arlt
authors.forename: Siladitya
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bhattacharya
mesh_terms: D000728:Androgens / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D017024:Chemotherapy, Adjuvant; D005260:Female; D005300:Fertility Agents, Female / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D005307:Fertilization in Vitro; D006801:Humans; D007247:Infertility, Female / Q000188:drug therapy*; D006080:Ovarian Follicle / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000254:growth & development; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D000728:Androgens; D005300:Fertility Agents, Female