Luteal phase estradiol level: a potential predictive marker for successful pregnancy in in vitro fertilization/intracytoplasmic sperm injection

Objective

To analyze the role of luteal E₂, P, and FSH levels in the prediction of clinical pregnancy in stimulated cycles.

Design

Prospective study.

Setting

Institute of Reproductive Medicine, Salt Lake, Kolkata, India.

Patient(s)

A total of 268 women aged <40 years undergoing their first IVF-ET/intracytoplasmic sperm injection cycles.

Intervention(s)

Estimation of luteal phase serum E₂, P, and FSH levels on days 0, 7, and 14 of ET.

Main Outcome Measure(s)

Comparison of luteal phase hormonal profile in pregnant and nonpregnant women and interpretation by discriminant analysis.

Result(s)

A total of 113 pregnancies were achieved (42.16%). Age, basal FSH level, peak E₂ level, number of oocytes retrieved, and number of embryos transferred were comparable between pregnant and nonpregnant women. Day-7 and day-14 luteal E₂ levels were significantly different between the two groups. Progesterone levels were comparable in both groups on days 0 and 14. Levels of FSH showed statistically significant differences between the two groups on days 0, 7, and 14. Classification accuracy for E₂, P, and FSH was 82.1%, 60.8%, and 67.51%, respectively.

Conclusion(s)

Luteal E₂ concentration seems to be a promising marker of successful clinical pregnancy.

Key Words: Luteal phase, estradiol, FSH, progesterone, pregnancy