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Clinical Application of Double Ovulation Stimulation in Patients with Diminished Ovarian Reserve and Asynchronous Follicular Development Undergoing Assisted Reproduction Technology

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Abstract

Objective

This study aimed to compare the clinical effects of double ovulation stimulation (DouStim) applied during the follicular and luteal phases with the antagonist protocol in patients with diminished ovarian reserve (DOR) and asynchronous follicular development undergoing assisted reproductive technology (ART).

Methods

The clinical data of patients with DOR and asynchronous follicular development receiving ART from January 2020 to December 2021 were retrospectively analyzed. The patients were divided into two groups according to their ovulation stimulation protocol: DouStim group (n=30) and antagonist group (n=62). Assisted reproduction and clinical pregnancy outcomes were compared between the two groups.

Results

In the DouStim group, the number of oocytes retrieved, metaphase II (MII) oocytes, two-pronuclei (2PN), day 3 (D3) embryos, D3 high-quality embryos as well as blastocyst formation, implantation, and human chorionic gonadotropin-positive rates were significantly greater than those in the antagonist group (all P<0.05). No significant differences were found in MII, fertilization, or continued pregnancy rates at the first frozen embryo transfer (FET), in-vitro fertilization (IVF) cancellation, or early medical abortion rates between the groups (all P>0.05). Except for the early medical abortion rate, the DouStim group generally had favorable outcomes. In the DouStim group, the dosage and duration of gonadotropin and the fertilization rate were significantly greater in the first ovulation stimulation induction than in the second ovulation stimulation induction (P<0.05).

Conclusion

The DouStim protocol efficiently and economically obtained more mature oocytes and high-quality embryos for patients with DOR and asynchronous follicular development.

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Acknowledgments

We wish to acknowledge the support of the Chinese PLA General Hospital. We would also like to thank Editage (www.editage.com) for English language editing.

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Author notes

  1. The authors contributed equally to this study.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, First Medical Center of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army General Hospital, Beijing, 100853, China

    Yi-zhuo Yang, Ming Zhang, Sha Mu, Hui Wang, Zhe Tang & Hong-mei Peng

  2. College of Medicine, Nankai University, Tianjin, 300071, China

    Xin-meng Guo

Authors
  1. Yi-zhuo Yang
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  2. Ming Zhang
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  3. Sha Mu
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  4. Xin-meng Guo
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  5. Hui Wang
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  6. Zhe Tang
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  7. Hong-mei Peng
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Hong-mei Peng.

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Conflict of Interest Statement

The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.

This study was supported by a Chinese Military family planning project grant (No. 17JS014).

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Yang, Yz., Zhang, M., Mu, S. et al. Clinical Application of Double Ovulation Stimulation in Patients with Diminished Ovarian Reserve and Asynchronous Follicular Development Undergoing Assisted Reproduction Technology. CURR MED SCI 43, 304–312 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11596-022-2687-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11596-022-2687-0

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