Stefano Palomba1, Susanna Santagni2, Jessica Daolio2, Karen Gibbins3, Francesco Antonino Battaglia4, Giovanni Battista La Sala2,5, Robert M Silver3. 1. Unit of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Grande Ospedale Metropolitano "Bianchi-Melacrino-Morelli", Via Melacrino, Reggio Calabria, Italy. stefanopalomba@tin.it. 2. Center of Reproductive Medicine and Surgery, Arcispedale Santa Maria Nuova (ASMN), Istituto di Ricovero e Cura a Carattere Scientifico (IRCCS), Reggio Emilia, Italy. 3. Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine, Utah University, Salt Lake City, UT, USA. 4. Unit of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Grande Ospedale Metropolitano "Bianchi-Melacrino-Morelli", Via Melacrino, Reggio Calabria, Italy. 5. University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy.
Abstract
PURPOSE: Low technology interventions for fertility enhancement (LTIFE) are strategies that avoid retrieval, handling, and manipulation of female gametes. The definition of LTIFE is yet to be widely accepted and clarified, but they are commonly used in milder cases of infertility and subfertility. Based on these considerations, the aim of the present study was comprehensively to review and investigate the obstetric and perinatal outcomes in subfertile patients who underwent LTIFE. METHODS: A literature search up to May 2017 was performed in IBSS, SocINDEX, Institute for Scientific Information, PubMed, Web of Science, and Google Scholar. An evidence-based hierarchy was used according to The Oxford Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine to determine which articles to include and analyze, and to provide a level of evidence of each association between intervention and outcome. RESULTS: This analysis identified preliminary and low-grade evidence on the influence of LTIFE on obstetric and perinatal outcomes in subfertile women. CONCLUSIONS: LTIFE women should deserve major consideration from Clinicians/Researchers of Reproductive Medicine, because these treatments could be potentially responsible for mothers' and babies' complications. So far, the lack of well-designed and unbiased studies makes further conclusions difficult to be drawn.
PURPOSE: Low technology interventions for fertility enhancement (LTIFE) are strategies that avoid retrieval, handling, and manipulation of female gametes. The definition of LTIFE is yet to be widely accepted and clarified, but they are commonly used in milder cases of infertility and subfertility. Based on these considerations, the aim of the present study was comprehensively to review and investigate the obstetric and perinatal outcomes in subfertilepatients who underwent LTIFE. METHODS: A literature search up to May 2017 was performed in IBSS, SocINDEX, Institute for Scientific Information, PubMed, Web of Science, and Google Scholar. An evidence-based hierarchy was used according to The Oxford Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine to determine which articles to include and analyze, and to provide a level of evidence of each association between intervention and outcome. RESULTS: This analysis identified preliminary and low-grade evidence on the influence of LTIFE on obstetric and perinatal outcomes in subfertilewomen. CONCLUSIONS: LTIFE women should deserve major consideration from Clinicians/Researchers of Reproductive Medicine, because these treatments could be potentially responsible for mothers' and babies' complications. So far, the lack of well-designed and unbiased studies makes further conclusions difficult to be drawn.
Authors: Georgina M Chambers; Stephanie K Y Choi; Katie Irvine; Christos Venetis; Katie Harris; Alys Havard; Robert J Norman; Kei Lui; William Ledger; Louisa R Jorm Journal: Int J Popul Data Sci Date: 2021-09-13