Low serum levels of vitamin D may impair a woman’s chances of conceiving through in vitro fertilization (IVF), according to the results of a large, prospective, cross-sectional study.
In patients undergoing IVF, a serum vitamin D level of 20 ng/mL or more was associated with a significantly greater chance of obtaining 3 or more high-quality embryos and with successful embryo implantation and clinical pregnancy compared with lower levels, researchers report write in an article published online August 14 in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism.
“Our work is the largest study to date to examine how vitamin D affects fertility in women who are undergoing IVF,” lead author Alessio Paffoni, MSc, said in a news release.
Vitamin D is known to be essential for animal reproduction, but its role in human fertility has been less well-studied, Paffoni, from the Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, Milan, Italy, and coauthors note. “We deem it important to definitely clarify whether vitamin D deficiency negatively affects clinical pregnancy rate, as this may potentially open new therapeutic scenarios for women scheduled for IVF and, more in general, to all women with infertility.”
They evaluated pregnancy outcomes in 335 women attending a fertility clinic in Milan between January and December 2012. Serum vitamin D levels were assessed by measuring 25-hydroxy-vitamin D [25(OH)D] no more than 90 days before embryo transfer. Overall, 154 women had vitamin D deficiency, defined as serum 25(OH)D levels lower than 20 ng/mL. The mean 25(OH)D level in the vitamin D–deficient group was 14.1 (standard deviation [SD], ±3.8) ng/mL. The remaining 181 women had serum 25(OH)D levels of 20 ng/mL or more, with a mean of 29.1 ± 8.3 ng/mL (P = .001). A level of at least 30 ng/mL is considered sufficient.
Source : http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/830022
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