CHICAGO — Ultrasound-guided embryo transfer (US-ET) is associated with significantly higher implantation and clinical pregnancy rates than is the clinical touch method, a study of 1,700 embryo transfers at a tertiary in vitro fertilization clinic indicates.
“These data add to the available evidence supporting the use of US-ET in assisted reproductive technology,” said Dr. Rubina Ali of St. Mary's Hospital, Manchester, England, in a presentation at the World Congress on Ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology.
Researchers compared implantation and clinical pregnancy rates for 881 consecutive fresh (385) and frozen (496) embryo transfers performed between 2003 and 2004 using the clinical touch method with 842 consecutive fresh (394) and frozen (448) transfers performed between 2004 and 2005 using US-ET.
The US-ET group showed a significantly higher rate of implantation, compared with the clinical touch group (fresh: 20% vs. 9.5%; frozen: 13% vs. 7%) and a significantly higher clinical pregnancy rate (fresh: 26.9% vs. 12.4%; frozen: 15.6% vs. 8.8%). Women in the two groups did not differ in demographic or clinical characteristics.
The US-ET group had a higher rate of miscarriage in the frozen embryo transfers (8.9% vs. 5.6%), but no other statistically significant differences were found.
“The practice of US-ET is associated with an increased likelihood of successful pregnancy outcome,” Dr. Ali concluded.