Instituto Bernabeu researches the effectiveness of beginning ovarian stimulation protocols in ova donors irrespective of the stage of the menstrual cycle

Instituto Bernabeu has submitted a pilot study involving ova donors to the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology (ESHRE). It researches differences in results when conventional ovarian stimulation protocols are applied in comparison with new, no fixed time stimulation protocols that do not take the stage of the menstrual cycle into account. The research entailed an analysis of ova donation cycles which was performed over ten months. It compared stimulation beginning on days 1 to 3 with ovarian stimulation that had no fixed time from day 4 onwards.

Experts at Instituto Bernabeu explain that ovarian stimulation cycles with no fixed time have recently emerged as an alternative option. The advantage of this option is that they could make it possible for treatment to begin irrespective of the day of the cycle and they could reduce the duration of stimulation and, in some cases, consumption of follicle-stimulating hormones (FSH).

The results of the trial indicate that ovarian stimulation can begin irrespective of the day of the ova donors’ menstrual cycle and still give results that are similar to those obtained during conventional stimulation.

No fixed day protocols have been studied in greater detail in cancer patients who wish to preserve their fertility and in women who wish to cryopreserve their oocytes. The results obtained were optimum. In this case, the researchers took one step further in order to study their effectiveness in ovarian stimulation protocols in oocyte donors.