Endometrial thickness after ovarian stimulation with gonadotropin, clomiphene, or letrozole for unexplained infertility, and association with treatment outcomes

Abstract

Objective: To study the association of endometrial thickness (EMT) with live birth rates (LBR) in ovarian stimulation with intrauterine insemination (OS-IUI) treatments for unexplained infertility. Design: Prospective cohort analysis of the Reproductive Medicine Network's Assessment of Multiple Intrauterine Gestations from Ovarian Stimulation (AMIGOS) randomized controlled trial. Setting: Multicenter randomized controlled trial. Patients: A total of 868 couples with unexplained infertility (n=2,459 cycles). Interventions: OS-IUI treatment cycles (n = 2,459) as part of the AMIGOS clinical trial. Main Outcome Measures: Live birth rates; unadjusted and adjusted risk ratios (RR) for live birth by EMT category, calculated using generalized estimating equations. Results: The overall mean EMT on day of human chorionic gonadotropin administration in cycles with a live birth was significantly greater than in those without. Compared to the referent EMT group of 9 to 12 mm, the unadjusted RR for live birth for the EMT groups of ≤5 and 6-8 were 0.48 and 0.92, respectively. The test for trend indicated evidence of decreasing LBR with decreasing EMT. After adjustment for ovarian stimulation medication, a linear trend was no longer supported. Stratified analyses revealed no differences in associations by treatment group. Conclusions: In OS-IUI for unexplained infertility, higher LBR are observed with increasing EMT; however, EMT is not significantly associated with LBR when adjusted for OS treatment type. Appreciable LBR are seen at all EMT, even those of ≤5 mm, suggesting that OS-IUI cycles should not be canceled for thin endometrium. Clinical Trial Registration Number: NCT01044862.