Recruitment of follicles by recombinant human follicle-stimulating hormone commencing in the luteal phase of the ovarian cycle

Objective: To investigate, in patients who previously had a suboptimal ovarian stimulation cycle, the benefit of starting ovarian stimulation before the onset of menses. Design: Prospective, randomized, controlled study. Setting: A tertiary referral center for infertility treatment. Patient(s): Forty patients undergoing IVF or GIFT from whom only 3-6 oocytes were retrieved in their last cycle. Intervention(s): Recombinant human FSH was administered before the onset of the menstrual period (experimental group) or in the early follicular phase after the onset of menses (control group). Main Outcome Measure(s): The number of oocytes retrieved. Result(s): Patients in the experimental group were ready for oocyte retrieval on menstrual cycle day 11 instead of cycle day 14. The number of oocytes retrieved was not significantly different between the two groups. Conclusion(s): Poor responders do not benefit from commencing recombinant human FSH therapy in the luteal phase. (C) 1998 by American Society for Reproductive Medicine.