Wet Mount Microscopy of the Vaginal Milieu Does Not Predict the Outcome of Fertility Treatments: A Cross-sectional Study.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study was to evaluate whether vaginal dysbiosis (bacterial vaginosis [BV] or moderate/severe aerobic vaginitis [AV]/desquamative inflammatory vaginitis) in women subjected to intrauterine insemination (IUI) or in vitro fertilization/intracytoplasmic sperm injection influences the rates of pregnancy. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This is a cross-sectional study involving 392 women who underwent IUI or in vitro fertilization/intracytoplasmic sperm injection at a fertility clinic. All had a slide collected for phase contrast wet mount microscopy (WMM), which was classified according to the International Society for the Study of Vulvovaginal Disease recommendations. Correlation between flora patterns and the rate of pregnancy were evaluated. RESULTS: There were no differences in any of the groups in terms of pregnancy rate (biochemical, clinical, at first trimester ultrasound, or live birth) after stratifying for the presence of BV, moderate or severe (ms) AV, BV and/or moderate or severe AV, cytolysis, or abnormal vaginal flora (lactobacillary grade ≥ IIb). The presence of Candida species, cocci, or bacilli morphotypes other than lactobacilli also showed no differences. CONCLUSIONS: The vaginal flora assessment by WMM at the time of IUI or oocyte retrieval was not predictive of the success of fertility treatments.The absence of differences may be due to intrinsic limitations of WMM (i.e., identifying only bacterial morphotypes), a positive impact of the treatments in the vaginal flora or because the sperm and embryo transfer is made directly into the uterine cavity, thus overcoming any cervical or vaginal dysbiosis disadvantage. Future studies should focus on the endometrial milieu, rather than in the vaginal and/or cervical one.

Infertility management in women with polycystic ovary syndrome: a review.

Polycystic ovary syndrome is the most common endocrine disorder in women and a major cause of anovulatory infertility. Various medical options are used, alone or in combination, to treat subfertility associated with polycystic ovary syndrome. This narrative review was conducted to provide an update and summarize the available evidence on the management of polycystic ovary syndrome related infertility. A wide literature search was performed and preferably randomized controlled trials and systematic reviews were included. Management is often centered on lifestyle changes. Pharmacological ovulation induction is the next step, with recommended use of letrozole, clomiphene citrate or gonadotropins. When it fails, assisted reproductive technologies or laparoscopic ovarian drilling are frequently advised. Combination treatment with metformin is often recommended. More recent alternative and adjunctive treatments have been suggested, like inositol, vitamin D, bariatric surgery and acupuncture, but further research is needed for recommendation.

Frozen Embryo Transfer and Preeclampsia Risk.

Worldwide, the use of Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) has been steadily rising over recent years. With the continuous improvements in cryopreservation techniques and the growing practice of single embryo transfer, the proportion of frozen embryo transfer (FET) cycles has been increasing, therefore raising concern about the safety of this ART technique to both mothers and infants. This review aims to summarize the current evidence regarding the risk of preeclampsia in singleton pregnancies achieved by autologous FET compared to fresh embryo transfer, and to discuss the influence of different protocols used for endometrium preparation in frozen cycles on the risk of this obstetric complication. Several studies have reported a higher risk of hypertensive disorders, including preeclampsia, in pregnancies following FET compared with fresh embryo transfer. Recently, artificial FET cycles, which preclude the development of a corpus luteum, were shown to be associated with an increased preeclampsia risk in comparison with natural and stimulated cycles. Importantly, no difference was found between FET in a modified natural cycle and spontaneous conception. It has been proposed that the absence of the corpus luteum in artificial cycles may, at least partly, contribute to the observed increased risk of preeclampsia. Indeed, the corpus luteum secretes vasoactive hormones, such as relaxin, which are not replaced in artificial cycles, thereby compromising maternal cardiovascular adaptations to pregnancy, resulting in an increased risk of preeclampsia. If these findings are confirmed by a randomized controlled trial, natural, modified natural or stimulated cycles might be preferred over artificial cycles in eligible patients.

Primary Dysmenorrhea: Assessment and Treatment.

Primary dysmenorrhea is defined as menstrual pain in the absence of pelvic disease. It is characterized by overproduction of prostaglandins by the endometrium, causing uterine hypercontractility that results in uterine muscle ischemia, hypoxia, and, subsequently, pain. It is the most common gynecological illness in women in their reproductive years and one of the most frequent causes of pelvic pain; however, it is underdiagnosed, undertreated, and even undervalued by women themselves, who accept it as part of the menstrual cycle. It has major implications for quality of life, such as limitation of daily activities and psychological stress, being one of the main causes of school and work absenteeism. Its diagnosis is essentially clinical, based on the clinical history and normal physical examination. It is important to exclude secondary causes of dysmenorrhea. The treatment may have different approaches (pharmacological, non-pharmacological and surgical), but the first line of treatment is the use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), and, in cases of women who want contraception, the use of hormonal contraceptives. Alternative treatments, such as topical heat, lifestyle modification, transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation, dietary supplements, acupuncture, and acupressure, may be an option in cases of conventional treatments' contraindication. Surgical treatment is only indicated in rare cases of women with severe dysmenorrhea refractory to treatment.

Dismenorreia primária é definida como dor menstrual na ausência de patologia pélvica. Caracteriza-se pelo excesso de produção de prostaglandinas pelo endométrio que provocam hipercontractilidade uterina, resultando em isquemia e hipoxia do músculo uterino e, subsequentemente, dor. É a patologia ginecológica mais comum em mulheres em idade fértil e uma das causas mais frequentes de dor pélvica; contudo, é subdiagnosticada, subtratada, e até desvalorizada pelas próprias mulheres, que a aceitam como parte do ciclo menstrual. A dismenorreia tem grandes implicações na qualidade de vida, como limitação das atividades diárias e estresse psicológico, sendo uma das principais causas de absentismo escolar e laboral. O seu diagnóstico é essencialmente clínico, baseando-se na história clínica e num exame físico sem alterações. É importante excluir causas secundárias de dismenorreia. O tratamento pode ter diferentes abordagens (farmacológica, não farmacológica e cirúrgica), sendo que a primeira linha de tratamento consiste na utilização de anti-inflamatórios não esteroides (AINEs) e, em casos de mulheres que desejem contracepção, no uso de anticoncepcionais hormonais. Tratamentos alternativos, como a utilização de calor tópico, modificação do estilo de vida, estimulação elétrica nervosa transcutânea, suplementos alimentares, acupuntura e acupressão, podem ser uma opção nos casos de contraindicação da utilização dos tratamentos convencionais. O tratamento cirúrgico apenas se encontra indicado em casos raros de mulheres com dismenorreia grave e refratária aos tratamentos.

[Assisted Reproductive Technology in Female Transplant Recipients: Experience of a Reproductive Medicine Unit and Literature Review]. / Procriação Assistida em Mulheres Transplantadas: Experiência de uma Unidade de Medicina da Reprodução e Revisão da Literatura.

Diseases in end stage typically occur with hypothalamic-pituitary-ovarian axis disorders, with consequent anovulation and infertility. The solid organ transplantation increased survival of patients with end-stage organs disease and the vast majority of women improve their reproductive capacity after transplantation. Although adoption can always be a possibility, the transplanted infertile woman has the right to self-reproductive determination using assisted reproductive techniques. While it is known that pregnancies in transplantedwomen are at high risk, there is no evidence of differences in pregnancy outcome in pregnant transplanted subject to technical, compared with spontaneous pregnancies. The use of assisted reproductive techniques in transplanted women is a medical, ethical and psychosocial challenge, whose approach must be multidisciplinary, to ensure reproductive success without compromising the function of the transplanted organ or maternal health, allowing the birth of a healthy child. The literature remains scarce. Three clinical cases are presented.

Doenças em estádio terminal cursam tipicamente com distúrbios do eixo hipotálamo-hipófise-ovário, com consequente anovulação e infertilidade. A transplantação de órgãos sólidos aumentou a sobrevida e melhorou a capacidade reprodutiva das mulheres com este tipo de patologia. Embora a adopção seja uma possibilidade, a mulher transplantada infértil tem direito à sua autodeterminação reprodutiva com recurso a técnicas de procriação medicamente assistida. As gravidezes em mulheres transplantadas são de alto risco, mas não parece existir evidência de diferenças no desfecho obstétrico e neonatal nas grávidas transplantadas sujeitas a procriação assistida, comparativamente a gravidezes espontâneas. A utilização de técnicas de procriação assistida em mulheres transplantadas constitui um desafio médico, ético e psicossocial, cuja abordagem deve ser multidisciplinar, para assegurar o sucesso reprodutivo sem comprometer a função do órgão transplantado ou a saúde materna, permitindo o nascimento de uma criança saudável. A literatura existente mantém-se escassa. São apresentados três casos clínicos.

Primary dysmenorrhea: assessment and treatment / Dismenorreia primária: avaliação e tratamento

Abstract Primary dysmenorrhea is defined asmenstrual pain in the absence of pelvic disease. It is characterized by overproduction of prostaglandins by the endometrium, causing uterine hypercontractility that results in uterine muscle ischemia, hypoxia, and, subsequently, pain. It is the most common gynecological illness in women in their reproductive years and one of the most frequent causes of pelvic pain; however, it is underdiagnosed, undertreated, and even undervalued by women themselves, who accept it as part of themenstrual cycle. It hasmajor implications for quality of life, such as limitation of daily activities and psychological stress, being one of themain causes of school and work absenteeism. Its diagnosis is essentially clinical, based on the clinical history and normal physical examination. It is important to exclude secondary causes of dysmenorrhea. The treatment may have different approaches (pharmacological, nonpharmacological and surgical), but the first line of treatment is the use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), and, in cases of women who want contraception, the use of hormonal contraceptives. Alternative treatments, such as topical heat, lifestyle modification, transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation, dietary supplements, acupuncture, and acupressure, may be an option in cases of conventional treatments' contraindication. Surgical treatment is only indicated in rare cases of women with severe dysmenorrhea refractory to treatment.

Resumo Dismenorreia primária é definida como dormenstrual na ausência de patologia pélvica. Caracteriza-se pelo excesso de produção de prostaglandinas pelo endométrio que provocam hipercontractilidade uterina, resultando em isquemia e hipoxia do músculo uterino e, subsequentemente, dor. É a patologia ginecológica mais comum em mulheres em idade fértil e uma das causas mais frequentes de dor pélvica; contudo, é subdiagnosticada, subtratada, e até desvalorizada pelas próprias mulheres, que a aceitam como parte do ciclo menstrual. A dismenorreia tem grandes implicações na qualidade de vida, como limitação das atividades diárias e estresse psicológico, sendo uma das principais causas de absentismo escolar e laboral. O seu diagnóstico é essencialmente clínico, baseando-se na história clínica e num exame físico sem alterações. É importante excluir causas secundárias de dismenorreia. O tratamento pode ter diferentes abordagens (farmacológica, não farmacológica e cirúrgica), sendo que a primeira linha de tratamento consiste na utilização de anti-inflamatórios não esteroides (AINEs) e, em casos de mulheres que desejem contracepção, no uso de anticoncepcionais hormonais. Tratamentos alternativos, como a utilização de calor tópico, modificação do estilo de vida, estimulação elétrica nervosa transcutânea, suplementos alimentares, acupuntura e acupressão, podem ser uma opção nos casos de contraindicação da utilização dos tratamentos convencionais. O tratamento cirúrgico apenas se encontra indicado em casos raros de mulheres com dismenorreia grave e refratária aos tratamentos.