OBJECTIVE
Embryos in vivo are not present in a static condition, since in the fallopian tube they are exposed to continuous movement, compression caused by the cilia and peristaltic movements, and shear stress from tubal fluid flow. In this study, we compared the outcome of human oocytes and embryos cultured in a micro-vibration culture system for In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) patients in comparison to the traditional static culture environment.
Design
Embryos in vivo are not present i
Materials and Methods
Oocytes and embryos from 1943 patients enrolled in IVF treatment from January 2010 to February 2013 were cultured in a traditional static culture, while 497 patients’ embryos from March 2013 to March 2014 were cultured in a micro-vibration culture. In the micro-vibration group, culture dishes were placed on the top of a platform producing a three-dimensional vibration of 56 Hz for 5 seconds every 60 minutes. Patients in both groups were compared according to their age (< 30; 30-35; 36-38 and >39 years old). The outcomes of micro-vibration culturing were compared for fertilization, blastulation, pregnancy and implantation rates. Variables were analyzed by chi-square test and Fisher’s exact test.
Results
Pregnancy rates significantly increased in the micro-vibration culture in younger patient groups compared to the static culture groups (< 30: 59.4% vs. 38.4%, P=0.0006; 30-35: 50% vs. 36.3%, P<=0.0005; 36-38: 42.7% vs. 31.2%, P=0.03) as did the implantation rate (<30: 54.2% vs. 25.5%, P<0.0001; 30-35: 48.1% vs. 30.1%, P<0.0001; 36-38: 40.3% vs. 26.5%, P<0.0001). The number of transferred embryos and day of transfer did not differ between these groups. For patients >39-years-old, micro-vibration culture tended to increase both pregnancy and implantation rates over the static culture but did not reach statistical significance (20.6% vs. 17.2%, P=0.41 and 21.1% vs. 15.3%, P=0.08, respectively). Micro-vibration culturing produced no effect on the fertilization rate. In addition, the overall blastulation rate was significantly higher in the micro-vibration culture compared to the static culture (40.5% vs. 31.2%, P<0.0001).
Conclusion
These results demonstrate clearly that the three-dimensional micro-vibration culture of oocytes and embryos significantly increases pregnancy and implantation rates. Mechanical vibration of the embryo may mimic the embryo’s in vivo environment and may cause movement of media around the embryo aiding in refreshing the media surrounding the embryos and diffusion of waste material.
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