Comparison of in vitro fertilization/intracytoplasmic sperm injection outcomes in patients receiving recombinant human luteinizing hormone vs human menopausal gonadotropin supplementation

Objectives: To compare the outcome of recombinant human luteinizing hormone (rh-LH) and human menopausal gonadotropin (hMG) supplementation in women undergoing in vitro fertilization/ intracytoplasmic sperm injection (IVF/ICSI) with recombinant follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) in the long gonadotropinreleasing hormone (GnRH) agonist stimulation protocol. Materials and methods: It was a retrospective analysis of the case records of 90 consecutive women who underwent nondonor IVF/ICSI cycle with long GnRH agonist. All women received recombinant FSH on day 2/3 of the programming cycle. When the level of LH was < 0.5 mIU/mL during any phase of stimulation, then addition of LH either as rh-LH or hMG is given along with recombinant FSH. Results: The number of oocytes collected, the number of oocytes in metaphase II (MII), and fertilization rate were similar in both groups. In addition, the mean number of embryos produced per cycle and the mean number of frozen embryos per cycle were similar in both groups. The cost of gonadotropin is similar in both groups. The ongoing pregnancy rate at 12 weeks was 20.4% after rh-FSH + hMG and 29.2% after rh-FSH + rh-LH (p-value = 0.092). Conclusion: Supplementing recombinant FSH with recombinant LH (rh-LH) when compared with hMG does not show statistically significant increase in pregnancy rates. However, this study was a pilot venture to introduce the rh-LH into our practice and further randomized study is required to substantiate its use in assistive reproductive technology.