Outcome of in vitro fertilization procedure at a private fertility center in Nnewi, South-East Nigeria

Abstract

Background: Infertility has grown to be a major health and social challenge in our environment that a childless marriage is regarded as a failed marriage. Couples are therefore ready to do all within their power to achieve pregnancy and have a baby of their own. This is the yawning gap assisted reproductive technology is fulfilling. Objective: To determine the outcome of in vitro fertilization (IVF) procedures 2 years after the commencement of the IVF program in a private hospital setting in Nnewi, Nigeria. Methods: From October 1, 2010 to September 30, 2012, 115 couples had conventional IVF procedures in batches of 10-15 couples. The outcome measures were clinical pregnancy rate, miscarriage rate, live birth rate, and sex ratio following one or two cycles of treatment. The results were analyzed using Epi info software 2013 version 7.0. Results: The mean age of the participants was 43.7 ± 3.5 years. The maximum number of embryos transferred per woman was four and minimum was one. The rates of clinical pregnancy, live births and multiple pregnancies were 30%, 18.3%, and 6.0%, respectively. Of the 31 women who conceived, 21 (67.7%) delivered live infants and 10 (32.3%) aborted in the first trimester. There was no case of ectopic pregnancy. The male:female sex ratio was 2:1. The mean endometrial thickness at embryo transfer (ET) was 8.9 ± 2.3 mm. Conclusion: The success rate of IVF-ET was good even in low resource settings and optimal endometrial thickness prior to ET may be one of the key success factors. The preponderance of male sex infants in our IVF births is acceptable to the couples who ordinarily have a preference for male infant.