In vitro fertilization culture medium surveys. A College of American Pathologists pilot proficiency testing survey.

Two pilot surveys for in vitro fertilization culture medium were conducted by the Reproductive Biology Resource Committee of the College of American Pathologists. The first phase (February 1991) involved seven laboratories, all of them being members of the committee, while the second phase (April 1991) also included other laboratories that voluntarily participated in the survey. Questionnaires accompanied the media and included variables such as conditions of shipment and measurements of pH and osmolarity, along with quality control results obtained from mouse embryo culture studies. Of the two medium samples per shipment, one was adulterated with an embryotoxic substance. The results of these surveys revealed consistency in most laboratories, while some laboratories could be easily identified due to their out-of-range results. These surveys have described the first attempts to develop an intralaboratory testing system for clinical in vitro fertilization laboratories. Further studies will be required to achieve greater consistency among laboratories with respect to implementation of the survey and reporting of results. Additionally, other systems should be evaluated, particularly for those laboratories that use systems other than mouse embryo culture.