Endocrinology Search
Endocrinology Endocrinology
infertility
INFERTILITY

Infertility is when a couple of reproductive age is unable to conceive after a year or more of regular unprotected intercourse.

It can be primary if no pregnancy has ever occurred or secondary if pregnancy has occurred irrespective of the outcome.

Ovulation induction is part of the patient's management which aims to achieve development of a single follicle and subsequent ovulation in a woman with anovulation.

  1. Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada. Endometriosis: diagnosis and management. Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology Canada. 2010;32(7):S1-S32. http://www.sogc.org. Accessed 19 Jul 2011. PMID: 21545757
  2. ACOG Committee on Practice Bulletins - Gynecology. Practice bulletin no. 114: management of endometriosis. Obstet Gynecol. 2010 Jul;116(1):223-236. doi: 10.1097/AOG.0b013e3181e8b073. PMID: 20567196
  3. Bukulmez O, Arici A. Luteal phase defect: myth or reality. Obstet Gynecol Clin North Am. 2004 Dec;31(4):727-744. PMID: 15550332
  4. Ashrafi M, Moni A, Mohammadzadeh A, et al. A comparative study of GnRH antagonists and GnRH agonists in PCO patients undergoing IVF/ICSI cycles. Iranian J Reprod Med. 2005;3(1):14-18. http://www.ijrm.ir.
  5. Braude P, Rowell P. Assisted conception. II--in vitro fertilisation and intracytoplasmic sperm injection. BMJ. 2003 Oct;327(7419):852-855. PMID: 14551103
  6. Braude P, Rowell P. Assisted conception. III--problems with assisted conception. BMJ. 2003 Oct;327(7420):920-923. PMID: 14563758
  7. Collins J. Stimulated intra-uterine insemination is not a natural choice for the treatment of unexplained subfertility. Current best evidence for the advanced treatment of unexplained subfertility. Hum Reprod. 2003 May;18(5):907-912. PMID: 12721160
  8. Cahill DJ, Wardle P. Management of infertility. BMJ. 2002 Jul;325(7354):28-32. PMID: 12098728
  9. Devroey P, Fauser BC, Diedrich K; Evian Annual Reproduction (EVAR) Workshop Group 2008. Approaches to improve the diagnosis and management of infertility. Hum Reprod Update. 2009;15(4):391-408. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed. PMID: 19380415
  10. Gharib S, Chapin MD, Rein MS, et al. Infertility: a guide to evaluation, treatment, and counseling. Boston (MA): Brigham and Women's Hospital. 2003
  11. Hamilton-Fairly DH, Taylor A. ABC of subfertility. Anovulation. BMJ. 2003;327(7414):546-549. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov. PMID: 12958117
  12. Forti G, Krausz C. Clinical review 100: Evaluation and treatment of the infertile couple. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 1998 Dec;83(12):4177-4188. PMID: 9851748
  13. Hart R. Unexplained infertility, endometriosis, and fibroids. BMJ. 2003 Sep;327(7417):721-724. PMID: 14512481
  14. Homburg R. The management of infertility associated with polycystic ovary syndrome. Reprod Biol Endocrinol. 2003 Nov;1:109. PMID: 14617367
  15. Jones HW Jr, Toner JP. The infertile couple. N Engl J Med. 1993 Dec;329(23):1710-1715. PMID: 8166801
  16. Hughes E, Brown J, Collins JJ, et al. Clomiphene citrate for unexplained subfertility in women. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2010 Jan(1). https://researchspace.auckland.ac.nz/bitstream/handle/2292/9628/14651858.CD000057.pub2.pdf?sequence=4. Accessed 12 Feb 2013. PMID: 20091498
  17. Kalro BN. Impaired fertility caused by endocrine dysfunction in women. Endocrinol Metab Clin North Am. 2003 Sep;32(3):573-592. PMID: 14575026
  18. Melmed S, Casanueva FF, Hoffman AR, et al. Diagnosis of hyperprolactinemia: an Endocrine Society clinical practice guideline. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2011 Feb;96(2):273-288. http://jcem.endojournals.org/content/96/2/273.full.pdf+html. Accessed 12 Feb 2013. PMID: 21296991
  19. Jose-Miller AB, Boyden JW, Frey KA. Infertility. Am Fam Physician. 2007 Mar;75(6):849-856. PMID: 17390595
  20. Practice Committee of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine; The Practice Committee of the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology. 2008 guidelines for gamete and embryo donation: a practice committee report. Fertil Steril. 2008 Nov;90(2):S30-S44. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed. PMID: 19007645
  21. Practice Committee of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine. The clinical relevance of luteal phase deficiency: a committee opinion. Jul 20, 2012. Fertil Steril. 2012 Nov;98(5):1112-1117. http://www.asrm.org. Accessed 12 Feb 2013. PMID: 22819186
  22. Rowell P, Braude P. Assisted conception. I-General principles. BMJ. 2003 Oct;327(7418):799-801. PMID: 14525882
  23. Smith S, Pfeifer S, Collins J. Diagnosis and management of female infertility. JAMA. 2003 Oct;290(13):1767-1770. PMID: 14519712
  24. Seyhan A, Ata B. The role of corifollitropin alfa in controlled ovarian stimulation for IVF in combination with GnRH antagonists. Int J Womens Health. 2011 Mar;3:243-255. doi: 10.2147/IJWH.S15002. PMID: 21892335
  25. Youssef MAFM, Al-Inany HG, Aboulghar M, Mansour R, Abou-Setta AM. Recombinant versus urinary human chorionic gonadothrophin for final oocyte maturation trigerring in IVF and ICSI cycles. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2011 Apr;4. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/14651858.CD003719.pub3/pdf/abstract. Accessed 12 Feb 2013. PMID: 21491386
  26. Ludwig M, Howles CM. Optimisation of ovarian stimulation protocols for assisted reproduction. 1st ed: CMP Medica; 2005 Jun
  27. MedWormhttp://www.medworm.com/rss/index.php/Endocrinology/15/http://www.medworm.com/rss/medicalfeeds/specialities/Endocrinology.xml
  28. MedWormhttp://www.medworm.com/rss/index.php/OBGYN/29/http://www.medworm.com/rss/medicalfeeds/specialities/OBGYN.xml
  29. Shenenberger D. Hyperprolactinemia. eMedicine. http://emedicine.medscape.com. Oct 2005.
  30. Petrozza JC. Assisted reproduction technology. eMedicine. http://www.emedicine.com. Jul 2006.
  31. American Society for Reproductive Medicine. Assisted reproductive technologies: a guide for patients. American Society for Reproductive Medicine. http://www.asrm.org. 2008.
  32. Wellbery C. Diagnosis and treatment of endometriosis. http://www.aafp.org. Oct 1999.
  33. Vayena E, Rowe PJ, Griffin PD, eds. Current practices and controversies in assisted reproduction: report of a WHO meeting on medical, ethical, and social aspects of assisted reproduction; Sep 17-21, 2001; Geneva, (Switzerland). Section 3, Ovarian stimulation for assisted reproductive technologies. http://whqlibdoc.who.int. Sep 2001.
  34. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. Fertility: assessment and treatment for people with fertility problem: NICE Clinical Guideline 156. NICE. http://www.nice.org.uk. Feb 2013. Accessed 25 Jun 2013.
  35. National Collaborating Centre for Women's and Children's Health. Fertility: assessment and treatment for people with fertility problems. http://www.nice.org.uk. Feb 2004.
  36. Hong Kong College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists. Guideline on induction of ovulation. HKCOG guidelines number 14. http://hkcog.obg.cuhk.edu.hk. Mar 2011. Accessed 12 Feb 2013.
  37. Garcia JE. Infertility. eMedicine. http://www.emedicine.com. 2006.
  38. Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists. Infertility: RCOG guidelines. http://www.rcog.org.uk. Jun 2010.
  39. American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG). Management of recurrent early pregnancy loss [summary in National Guideline Clearinghouse]. http://www.guideline.gov. Feb 2001
  40. Evidence-based guideline for the assessment and management of polycystic ovary syndrome. Jean Hailes Foundation for Women’s Health on behalf of the PCOS Australian Alliance; Melbourne, 2011. http://www.adelaide.edu.au. 2011. Accessed 12 Feb 2013.
  41. Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility Committee of the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada. Ovulation induction in polycystic ovary syndrome. SOGC clinical practice guideline no. 242. http://sogc.org. May 2010. Accessed 11 Feb 2013.
  42. American Society for Reproductive Medicine. Medications for inducing ovulation: a guide for patients. American Society for Reproductive Medicine. http://www.asrm.org. 2006
  43. Ginsburg ES. Procedure for intrauterine insemination. UpToDate. http://www.uptodate.com. Jan 2013
  44. The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists. The investigation and management of endometriosis. Guideline No. 24. http://www.rcog.org.uk. Oct 2006.
  45. Loh SF, Agarwal R, Chan J, et al. Academy of Medicine-Ministry of Health clinical practice guidelines: assessment and management of infertility at primary healthcare level. Singapore Med J. 2014 Feb;55(2):58-65. http://www.sma.org.sg. PMID: 24570313
  46. Okun N, Sierra S, Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada. Pregnancy outcomes after assisted human reproduction. J Obstet Gynaecol Can. 2014 Jan;36(1):64-83. http://sogc.org. Accessed 19 May 2014. PMID: 24444289
  47. Kersten FA, Hermens RP, Braat DD, et al. Overtreatment in couples with unexplained infertility. Hum Reprod. 2015 Jan;30(1):71-80. doi: 10.1093/humrep/deu262. PMID: 25336712
  48. Kuohung W, Hornstein MD. Overview of treatment of female infertility. UpToDate. http://www.uptodate.com. 17 Apr 2015. Accessed 27 Apr 2015.
  49. Legro RS, Brzyski RG, Diamond MP, et al; NICHD Reproductive Medicine Network. Letrozole versus clomiphene for infertility in the polycystic ovary syndrome. N Engl J Med. 2014 Jul 10;371(2):119-129. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa1313517. PMID: 25006718
  50. Subramaniam R, Sinthamoney E, Damodaran P, et al. Clinical guidelines for the management of endometriosis 2016. Obstetrical and Gynaecological Society of Malaysia (OGSM). http://www.ogsm.org.my. 2016. Accessed 24 Jan 2017.
  51. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. Fertility problems: assessment and treatment. NICE. https://www.nice.org.uk. Updated Aug 2016. Accessed 02 Mar 2017.
  52. World Health Organization (WHO). Global prevalence of infertility, infecundity and childlessness. WHO. http://www.who.int. 2017. Accessed 02 Mar 2017.
  53. Wang R, Kim BV, van Wely M, et al. Treatment strategies for women with WHO group II anovulation: systematic review and network meta-analysis. BMJ. 2017 Jan 31;356:j138. doi: 10.1136/bmj.j138. Accessed 02 May 2017. PMID: 28143834
  54. European Medicines Agency. Elonva summary of product characteristics. EMA website. http://www.ema.europa.eu. 11 Dec 2015.
  55. Liu W, Dong S, Li Y, et al. Randomized controlled trial comparing letrozole with laparoscopic ovarian drilling in women with clomiphene citrate-resistant polycystic ovary syndrome. Exp Ther Med. 2015 Oct;10(4):1297-1302. doi: 10.3892/etm.2015.2690. PMID: 26622481
  56. Fauser B. Overview of ovulation induction. UpToDate. https://www.uptodate.com. 28 Nov 2016.
  57. Snyder PJ. Causes of hyperprolactinemia. UpToDate. www.uptodate.com. Mar 2017.
  58. Snyder PJ. Patient education: high prolactin levels and prolactinomas. UpToDate. www.uptodate.com. Jul 2017.
  59. Practice Committee of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine. Comparison of pregnancy rates for poor responders using IVF with mild ovarian stimulation versus conventional IVF: a guideline. Fertil Steril. 2018 Jun;109(6):993-999. doi: 10.1016/j.fertnstert.2018.03.019. PMID: 29935660
  60. Teede HJ, Misso ML, Costello MF, et al; International PCOS Network. Recommendations from the international evidence-based guideline for the assessment and management of polycystic ovary syndrome. Clin Endocrinol (Oxf). 2018 Jul 19. doi: 10.1111/cen.13795. PMID: 30024653
  61. Centre for Research Excellence in Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (CREPCOS), European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology (ESHRE) and American Society of Reproductive Medicine (ASRM). International evidence-based guideline for the assessment and management of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). ESHRE. https://www.eshre.eu. 2018.
  62. Kuohung W, Hornstein MD. Treatments for female infertility. UpToDate. https://www.uptodate.com. 30 Jan 2019.
  63. Practice Committee of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine. The role of immunotherapy in in vitro fertilization: a guideline. Fertil Steril. 2018 Aug;110(3):387-400. doi: 10.1016/j.fertnstert.2018.05.009. PMID: 30098685
Digital Edition
Asia's trusted medical magazine for healthcare professionals. Get your MIMS Endocrinology - Malaysia digital copy today!
Sign In To Download
Editor's Recommendations
Most Read Articles
Resistant starch supplementation does not improve glycaemic control in prediabetic adults
06 Oct 2018
Supplementation with resistant starch for 12 weeks decreases the inflammatory marker tumour necrosis factor [TNF]-α and heart rate but does not significantly improve glycaemic control and other cardiovascular disease risk factors in prediabetic adults, suggests a study.