Progesterone levels on the day of human chorionic gonadotropin do not predict pregnancy outcome from the transfer of fresh or cryopreserved embryos from the same cohort.

OBJECTIVE

To analyze the differences in pregnancy rates (PRs) from the transfer of fresh and cryopreserved embryos from the same cohort of oocytes based on serum P levels on the day of hCG administration and the day after.

DESIGN

Retrospective analysis.

SETTING

Infertility patients stimulated for IVF-ET in an academic center.

PATIENT(S): Three hundred thirty-three patients with fresh transfer and at least one transfer of cryopreserved embryos from the same cohort of recruited oocytes. All stimulations were down-regulated with a GnRH agonist in a long protocol before gonadotropin stimulation.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S): Clinical PR.

RESULT(S): The clinical PR in fresh cycles was 24% for the P < or = 0.9 ng/mL group (group A; conversion factor to SI unit, 3.18) and 34% for the P > 0.9 ng/mL group (group B). Group B patients were younger, received fewer ampules of gonadotropins, had higher peak E2 levels, and had more mature oocytes. There were no significant differences in the P levels on the day of hCG between patients who conceived in both fresh and cryopreserved cycles and any other combination of pregnancy outcome sequence.

CONCLUSION(S): These findings suggest that serum P level cutoffs, on the day of hCG and the day after, as a means of making clinical decisions with respect to cancelling the fresh transfer and cryopreservation of all embryos for future transfer should be questioned.