Your Fertility Pharmacist

Episoade

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  Fortysomethings, Donor Eggs, and Baby Success 02.04.2025 8min

  A retrospective cohort study found that maternal age (40-44 vs. 45-49 vs. >49 years) impacts live birth rates using donor oocytes (eggs).
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  Preconception Antibiotics and Fertility 12.01.2025 6min

  A new meta-analysis examined preconception antibiotics and the impact on fertility, pregnancy, miscarriage, and birth defects.
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  Accuracy & Mail-In Semen Kits 27.11.2024 5min

  A comparison of accuracy between delayed, mail-in semen analysis and fresh, clinic-based samples.
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  Fight of the Follitropins: Gonal-F vs. Puregon 27.10.2024 2min

  This study compared efficacy of two r-FSH medications: follitropin alpha (Gonal-F) vs. follitropin beta (Puregon) on the number of live births cumulatively (CLBR). This was looking at patients 21-45yrs doing fresh embryo transfer after their first IVF or ICSI cycle.ResourcesCao JX, Song JY. Follitropin Alpha versus Follitropin Beta in IVF/ICSI Cycle: A Retrospective Cohort Study. Drug Des Devel Ther. 2024;18:4359-4369. Published 2024 Sep 26. doi:10.2147/DDDT.S479700Van den Haute L, Drakopoulos P, Verheyen G, De Vos M, Tournaye H, Blockeel C. Follitropin alpha versus beta in a first GnRH antagonist ICSI cycle: a retrospective cohort study. Reprod Biomed Online. 2021;43(4):655-662. doi:10.1016/j.rbmo.2021.06.014
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  Parenting after PGT 19.10.2024 2min

  Discussion on a new survey published that focuses on how and why parents chose to explain preimplantation genetic testing (PGT) to their children conceived via IVF.
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  PRP and POR 08.09.2024 11min

  The most rigorously designed trial (to date) of intraovarian PRP demonstrated no improvements in # of mature oocytes obtained or # of live births versus no injections.
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  Letrozole vs. Clomiphene: the OG Study 24.04.2024 11min

  ResourcesBronson R. and Kruljac I, Butorac D, Vrkljan M. and Legro RS, Zhang H; Eunice Kennedy Shriver NICHD Reproductive Medicine Network. Letrozole or clomiphene for infertility in the polycystic ovary syndrome. N Engl J Med. 2014;371(15):1463-1464. doi:10.1056/NEJMc1409550Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. PCOS (Polycystic Ovary Syndrome) and Diabetes. https://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/basics/pcos.html. Accessed April 21, 2024.Franik S, Kremer JA, Nelen WL, Farquhar C. Aromatase inhibitors for subfertile women with polycystic ovary syndrome. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2014;(2):CD010287. Published 2014 Feb 24. doi:10.1002/14651858.CD010287.pub2Franik S, Le QK, Kremer JA, Kiesel L, Farquhar C. Aromatase inhibitors (letrozole) for ovulation induction in infertile women with polycystic ovary syndrome. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2022;9(9):CD010287. Published 2022 Sep 27. doi:10.1002/14651858.CD010287.pub4Legro RS, Brzyski RG, Diamond MP, et al. Letrozole versus clomiphene for infertility in the polycystic ovary syndrome [published correction appears in N Engl J Med. 2014 Oct 9;317(15):1465]. N Engl J Med. 2014;371(2):119-129. doi:10.1056/NEJMoa1313517Legro RS, Diamond MP, Coutifaris C, et al. Pregnancy registry: three-year follow-up of children conceived from letrozole, clomiphene, or gonadotropins. Fertil Steril. 2020;113(5):1005-1013. doi:10.1016/j.fertnstert.2019.12.023Palomba S, Santagni S, Falbo A, La Sala GB. Complications and challenges associated with polycystic ovary syndrome: current perspectives. Int J Womens Health. 2015;7:745-763https://doi.org/10.2147/IJWH.S70314World Health Organization. Polycystic Ovary Syndrome. World Health Organization; 2023. Accessed April 21, 2024. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/polycystic-ovary-syndromeZhang H. Pregnancy in Polycystic Ovary Syndrome II (PPCOSII). ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT00719186 . Updated June 14, 2018. Accessed April 20, 2020. https://classic.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT00719186
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  COVID Infection after Embryo Transfer 10.02.2024 8min

  A new study examines the associations between COVID-19 infection with pregnancy and miscarriage rates, looking at the first ten weeks after fresh embryo transfer.
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  Liraglutide and Male Reproductive Health 30.09.2023 9min

  A study compared fertility and sexual markers in obese men with low testosterone and erectile dysfunction who took liraglutide, uFSH + HCG, or testosterone. These men separated into three groups based on their plans for parenthood; results showed impressive improvements on the GLP-1 agonist liraglutide.
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  Use of a New Oral Drug in Egg Donor Cycles 12.07.2023 10min

  A recent study compared GnRH antagonists in egg donor ovarian stimulation cycles. The first drug is a newer agent, elagolix (Orilissa), that is taken as a tablet at night. The older drug is an injectable agent called ganirelix (Fyremadel). How did elagolix stack up with eggs retrieved and embryos formed vs. ganirelix? Were there adverse events, like ovarian hyperstimulation or early LH surge? Results and what they mean for upcoming egg donor cycles are explored in this episode.
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  Improving Ovarian Function in Obesity with IV FSH 20.06.2023 10min

  A new trial tested a new way to give FSH to improve ovarian function in obese women without PCOS who are struggling to conceive.
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  Dex + Letrozole for PCOS Ovulation Induction 23.05.2023 9min

  This study adds low-dose dexamethasone to letrozole in women with PCOS who failed to ovulate with letrozole alone. This study looked at ovulation, pregnancy, and live birth rates and took place at the Mayo Clinic from 2019 to 2022.
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  Herbal and Supplement Use in Fertility Treatments 19.04.2023 10min

  Women report their use of herbs and supplements to a fertility clinic that assesses for herb-drug interactions.
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  Progesterone for Threatened Miscarriage 20.03.2023 11min

  Does vaginal progesterone prevent miscarriages after early pregnancy bleeding? The research world has yet to agree, but a recently published Australian study (aka "the STOP trial") attempted to tackle this question. After seven years of recruiting ~300 women, the STOP trial was stopped prematurely based on early results. Hurdles with study execution plus thinly-disguised jabs at other research made for an interesting paper. Bordewijk EM, Li W, Gurrin LC, Thornton JG, van Wely M, Mol BW. An investigation of seven other publications by the first author of a retracted paper due to doubts about data integrity. Eur J Obstet Gynecol Reprod Biol. 2021;261:236-241. doi:10.1016/j.ejogrb.2021.04.018Carmichael SL, Shaw GM, Laurent C, Croughan MS, Olney RS, Lammer EJ. Maternal progestin intake and risk of hypospadias. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 2005 Oct;159(10):957-62. doi: 10.1001/archpedi.159.10.957. PMID: 16203941.Casarramona G, Lalmahomed T, Lemmen C, et al. The efficacy and safety of luteal phase support with progesterone following ovarian stimulation and intrauterine insemination: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2022;13:960393. Published 2022 Sep 2. doi:10.3389/fendo.2022.960393 Coomarasamy A, Devall AJ, Cheed V, et al. A Randomized Trial of Progesterone in Women with Bleeding in Early Pregnancy. N Engl J Med. 2019;380(19):1815-1824. doi:10.1056/NEJMoa1813730. Devall AJ, Papadopoulou A, Podesek M, et al. Progestogens for preventing miscarriage: a network meta-analysis. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2021;4(4):CD013792. Published 2021 Apr 19. doi:10.1002/14651858.CD013792.pub2McLindon LA, James G, Beckmann MM, et al. Progesterone for women with threatened miscarriage (STOP trial): a placebo-controlled randomized clinical trial [published online ahead of print, 2023 Feb 20]. Hum Reprod. 2023;dead029. doi:10.1093/humrep/dead029Meurer WJ, Tolles J. Interim Analyses During Group Sequential Clinical Trials. JAMA. 2021;326(15):1524-1525. doi:10.1001/jama.2021.10174Oripro (progesterone pessary used in clinical trial) accessible at https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/medicines/brand/amt,124041000036109/oriproŞükür YE, Göç G, Köse O, et al. The effects of subchorionic hematoma on pregnancy outcome in patients with threatened abortion. J Turk Ger Gynecol Assoc. 2014;15(4):239-242. Published 2014 Dec 1. doi:10.5152/jtgga.2014.14170Yan X, Xu H, Li J, Xu Z, Niu Y, Wang Y. Subchorionic hematoma and risk of preterm delivery: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Am J Obstet Gynecol MFM. 2023;5(1):100791. doi:10.1016/j.ajogmf.2022.100791
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  Comparing hCG Trigger Doses in Fresh Embryo Transfer 29.01.2023 11min

  This is the first randomized controlled multi-arm trial comparing how three hCG trigger doses impact endogenous progesterone levels in IVF- fresh embryo transfer cycles.
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  Caffeine, Coffee, and Pregnancy Loss 01.12.2022 9min

  This is the first meta-analysis published in seven years to look at associations between caffeine or coffee consumption and pregnancy loss. More details at www.yourfertilitypharmacist.com
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  Taking Tadalafil to Improve Embryo Implantation 21.10.2022 8min

  This is the first study to test the use of vaginal tadalafil on endometrial thickness and pregnancies in women using IVF to conceive. ResourcesBalduyck J, Ameye A, Decleer W. Effect of vaginal/oral tadalafil on endometrial thickness in IVF patients: a double-blind, placebo controlled RCT: a pilot study. Facts Views Vis Obgyn. 2022;14(2):155-161. doi:10.52054/FVVO.14.2.026Belapurkar P, Jaiswal A, Madaan S. Comparison of Efficacy Between Vaginal Sildenafil and Granulocyte-Colony Stimulating Factor (G-CSF) in Improving Endometrial Thickness (ET) in Infertile Women. Cureus. 2022;14(6):e26415. Published 2022 Jun 29. doi:10.7759/cureus.26415Cialis. Package Insert. Eli Lilly and Company; 2011.Heger A, Sator M, Walch K, Pietrowski D. Smoking Decreases Endometrial Thickness in IVF/ICSI Patients. Geburtshilfe Frauenheilkd. 2018;78(1):78-82. doi:10.1055/s-0043-123762Mostafa T. Useful Implications of Low-dose Long-term Use of PDE-5 Inhibitors. Sex Med Rev. 2016;4(3):270-284. doi:10.1016/j.sxmr.2015.12.005
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  Breast Cancer & Fertility Preservation 30.09.2022 9min

  A recent randomized controlled trial compares ovarian stimulation protocols (standard vs. tamoxifen vs. letrozole) for freezing oocytes or embryos used in women diagnosed with breast cancer.
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  Liraglutide, Obesity, & PCOS 31.08.2022 10min

  This is the first randomized, placebo-controlled trial of the weight-loss drug liraglutide, brand names Victoza and Saxenda, in non-diabetic women with PCOS and obesity who had interest in conceiving.
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  Assisted Reproduction and Testing Positive for COVID-19 19.07.2022 20min

  An overview of research on women who completed ICSI, IVF, and/or embryo transfer while actively or recently testing positive for SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19).