Ultrasound could help couples undergoing IVFMarch 15, 2007Ultrasound-based tests allowing women undergoing in-vitro fertilization (IVF) to count their chickens before they've hatched may provide alternatives to the hormone-based tests used today. Less costly and invasive than the current ovarian reserve tests, clinicians may in future consider using ultrasound scans of a woman's ovaries to predict her ovaries' response to IVF. Research published today in Reproductive Biology and Endocrinology details how Janet Kwee et. al. from Vrije Universiteit Medical Centre in Amsterdam, The Netherlands studied 110 women aged 18-39 who had difficulty conceiving. She counted the number of antral follicles, small egg-bearing ovarian follicles about 2-10 mm in diameter, with transvaginal sonography (ultrasound). Kwee compared the follicle count with ovarian volume with the results from ovarian reserve endocrine tests. The antral follicle count was an effective predictor of the number of eggs the patient would ultimately produce when her ovaries had been stimulated during IVF treatment. A test that can be administered before IVF that indicates ovarian response might be used to counsel patients as to their chances of success, and help clinicians decide the starting dose of hormones used to stimulate the patient's ovaries for the best results. After around age 40, the ovaries' size decreases-an early sign that the number of follicles, and potential eggs, is depleted. Women with few eggs in their ovarian reserve are less likely to have an adequate ovarian response for successful IVF. "The follicle count is just as good a test for ovarian response as expensive and time consuming endocrine tests," says Kwee, who adds that the count appears to be "the only test able to reliably predict low and high responders." BioMed Central |
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| Related Ultrasound Current Events and Ultrasound News Articles Engineer designs micro-endoscope to seek out early signs of cancer Traditional endoscopes provide a peek inside patients' bodies. Now, a University of Florida engineering researcher is designing ones capable of a full inspection. Young athletes need dual screening tests for heart defects, study suggests To best detect early signs of life-threatening heart defects in young athletes, screening programs should include both popular diagnostic tests, not just one of them, according to new research from heart experts at Johns Hopkins. Routine evaluation of prostate size not as effective in cancer screening, Mayo study finds New Mayo Clinic research studied the association between prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels and prostate size and found that routine annual evaluation of prostate growth is not necessarily a predictor for the development of prostate cancer. Newly revised guidelines for managing thyroid cancer published in Thyroid journal The American Thyroid Association has released new, revised Management Guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of patients with thyroid nodules and thyroid cancer. Longer toes, unique ankle structure aid sprinters Longer toes and a unique ankle structure provide sprinters with the burst of acceleration that separates them from other runners, according to biomechanists. Short heels make elite sprinters super speedy When 100 m sprinters launches themselves from the starting blocks, the race can be won or lost in the first few strides. Acceleration through the first few strides is the key to winning gold. Neurologists Investigate Possible New Underlying Cause of MS Neurologists at the University at Buffalo are beginning a research study that could overturn the prevailing wisdom on the cause of multiple sclerosis (MS). Berkeley researchers create first hyperlens for sound waves Ultrasound and underwater sonar devices could "see" a big improvement thanks to development of the world's first acoustic hyperlens. Created by researchers with the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab), the acoustic hyperlens provides an eightfold boost in the magnification power of sound-based imaging technologies. Clots traveling from lower veins may not be the cause of pulmonary embolism in trauma patients A report from a team of Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) physicians calls into question the longstanding belief that pulmonary embolism (PE) - the life-threatening blockage of a major blood vessel in the lungs - is caused in trauma patients by a blood clot traveling from vessels deep within the legs or lower torso. Thyroid surgery safe for older patients, study finds Thyroid surgery is safe for older patients, say physicians who found only slight differences in rates of complications and hospital readmissions in a multi-year study. More Ultrasound Current Events and Ultrasound News Articles |
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