Infertility Flashcards
Even without treatment, what percent of women will conceive during the second year of attempting?
50%
What is the definition of infertility?
- Inability to conceive after 1 year of unprotected intercourse of reasonable frequency in women <35
- Inability to conceive after 6 months of unprotected intercourse of reasonable frequency in women >35 yo
- > 40 yo more immediate evaluation and treatment
What conditions known to cause infertility would warrant more immediate evaluation of infertility?
- Oligomenorrhea or amenorrhea
- Known or suspected uterine, tubal, or peritoneal disease
- Stage 3 or 4 endometriosis
- Known or suspected male infertility
What is considered primary infertility? Secondary?
Primary: no prior pregnancies
Secondary: following at least one prior conception
What are the most common causes of infertility?
- Ovulatory
- Male
- Tubal/uterine
- Other
- Unexplained
BOTH PARTNERS NEED to be evaluated
If you can’t figure out problem, start on treatment for ovulatory issue
What questions will be asked when assessing infertility?
- Frequency, duration, changes, hot flashes, dysmenorrhea during menstruation
- Signs of ovulation: cervical mucus changes, ovulation tests, basal body temperatures
- Prior contraeptive use
- History of ovarian cysts, endometriosis, leiomyomas, STDs, PID
- History of abnormal pap smears; conization: can decrease cervical mucus quality and cervical anatomy
What does a prior pregnancy confirm?
Ovulation and patent fallopian tube
What pregnancy complications can be helpful in diagnosing infertility?
- Miscarriage
- Preterm delivery
- Retained placenta
- Postpartum D&C
- Chorioamnionitis
- Fetal anomalies
What are questions to ask about coital history?
- Frequency
- Timing: chance of conception increased 5 days preceding ovulation, should have daily intercourse during this period
- Dyspareunia
- Lubricants: avoid oil based lubricants, water based preferred
What medical history can impact fertility?
- Chemotherapy
- Radiation
- Androgen excess –> PCOS
- Thyroid disease
- Hyperprolactinemia
- Medications
- BMI: moderate weight reduction in overweight women can normalize menstrual cycles and increase chance of pregnancy
What social history can impact fertility?
- Lifestyle
- Environmental factors: eating habits, toxins
- Smoking: lowers fertility in men and women
- Alcohol
- Caffeine
- Illicit drugs
- Ethnicity: important for pre-conceptional testing
What are key components of infertility physical exam?
- Weight, BMI
- Thyroid enlargement and presence of nodules or tenderness
- Breast secretions
- Signs of androgen excess
- Tanner staging of breasts, pubic and axillary hair
- Vaginal or cervical abnormalities
- Uterine size, shape, position, mobility
- Adnexal masses or tenderness
- Cul-de-sac masses, tenderness, or nodularity
What are common causes of female infertility?
- Ovulatory disorders
- Endometriosis
- Pelvic adhesions
- Tubal blockage or other tubal problems
- Uterine or cervical factors
- Unexplained
Genetic testing has a low incidence of abnormalities in female infertility. When should you consider testing?
- History of recurrent pregnancy loss –> 3 or more consecutive loss at <20 weeks gestation or with fetal weight <500 g
- Premature ovarian failure (<40 yo)
What can cause recurrent pregnancy loss?
- Parental chromosomal abnormalities (aneuploidy, more common in sporadic miscarriages)
- Antiphospholipid syndrome
- Uterine abnormalities
What is the most common cause of premature ovarian failure (<40 yo) and a sign of this?
- Turners,menopause occuring at younger age
- Average normal age of menopause is 51 yo
What can ovulation be affected by?
Abnormalities in hypothalamus, pituitary, or ovaries
What are common etiologies of ovulatory dysfunction?
- Hypothyroidism
- Hyperprolactinemia
- Diminished ovarian reserve- someone who is older w/o good eggs
- PCOS
What type of relationship is present between female age and fertility?
Inverse relationship
Why does infertility increase as age increases?
- Loss of viable oocytes
- Risk of genetic abnormalities and mitochondrial deletions in remaining oocytes increases with age –> increased rate of miscarriage
How is ovulatory dysfunction diagnosed?
- Menstrual history: cyclic menses (25-35 days with duration of 3-7 days), Mittleschmerz, Moliminal symptoms (breast tenderness, acne, food cravings, mood changes) good
- Labs: TSH, FT4, Prolactin
- Weight: anorexia and bulimia can affect GnRH; obesity can indicate PCOS
- Basal body temperature: postovulatory rise by .4-.8 F; but insensitive in many women
- Sonography
- Ovulation predictor kits
- Serum progesterone
- Serum FSH
- Serum estradiol
- AMH
How can sonography be used to predict ovulatory dysfunction?
- Serial exams demonstrate maturation of antral follicle and collapse during ovulation
- Count less than 5-7 can indicate diminished ovarian reserve
- Benefits: useful in diagnosis of PCOS
- limitations: time consuming, expensive
How can ovulation predictor kits be used to diagnose ovulatory dysfunction?
- Test concentration of urinary LH
- Should begin testing 2-3 days before predicted LH surge and continue daily
- Test with first morning void
- Ovulation will occur day following urinary LH peak
- Benefits: some studies shown to have sensitivity of 100%
- Limitations: expensive
How is serum progesterone used to diagnose ovulatory dysfunction?
- Check progesterone on day 21 in 28 day cycle
- Can also be checked 7 days following ovulation
- Serum progesterone: <2 ng/mL
- > 3 ng/mL indicative of ovulation (progesterone produced by corpus luteum)
- Benefits: easy to do
- Limitations: progesterone secreted in pulses and single measurement may not be indicative of overall production
How is serum FSH used to diagnose ovulatory dysfunction?
- Sensitive predictor of ovarian reserve
- With decreasing ovarian reserve, less inhibin secreted
- Inhibin inhibits FSH resulting in increased FSH
- Typically performed on cycle day #3
- > 10 mIU/mL indicates significant loss of ovarian reserve
How is serum estradiol used to diagnose ovulatory dysfunction?
- Measure with serum FSH
- Due to increase FSH with decreasing ovarian reserves, will have increasing estradiol level (overcompensating)
- > 80 pg/mL is abnormal
How is antimullerian hormone used to diagnose ovarian dysfunction?
- Expressed by granulosa cells of small preantral follicles
- Possible role in recruitment of dominant follicle
- Levels correlate with ovarian primordial follicle number
- In PCOS, may be 2-3 fold increase in levels
- <1 ng/mL associated with diminished ovarian reserve
- INCREASED AMH = MORE FOLLICLES
What is treatment for hyperprolactinemia leading to ovarian dysfunction?
- Fasting during testing?
- If no identified cause, check head MRI to identify micro/macroadenoma
- Treatment with dopamine agonists –> bromocriptine or cabergoline
- Surgery
What are effects of hypothyroidism on ovulation? What is treatment?
Effects: Oligomenorrhea and amenorrhea, even subclinical can cause problem
Treatment: levothyroxine
What is treatment for diminished ovarian reserve?
- Ovulation induction
- IUI/IVF
- Egg donor
What is used for ovulation induction?
- Clomiphene citrate
- Aromatase inhibitors –> Letrozole
- Gonadotropins
What is the initial treatment for most anovulatory infertile women?
Ovulation induction with clomiphene citrate
What is the mechanism of action of clomiphene citrate?
- Oral medication given for 5 days starting on cycle day 2-5
- Estrogen antagonist that results in increase in FSH which increases ovarian follicular activity
What is the mechanism of action of aromatase inhibitors (Letrozole)?
- Oral medication given cycle day 3-7
- Inhibits the production of estrogens, so it increases FSH
What is the mechanism of action of gonadotropins?
Urinary or recombinant FSH and LH given intramuscular or SQ
Expensive though!
What are complications of ovulation induction?
- Multifetal gestation–> increase in obstetrical outcomes
- Ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome