Higher gonadotropin consumption and longer stimulation durations were observed in the obese females, when compared with the normal weight women. However, we did not find any significant differences in terms of embryological parameters and cycle cancelation rates across the BMI categories. Similarly, clinical pregnancy, spontaneous abortion and ongoing pregnancy rates were found to be comparable between the groups.
The duration of infertility was significantly higher in the obese women, when compared to the normal weight women, although the mean age of the women between the BMI categories was similar. Since it was the first fresh cycle for each woman, this might indicate a possible delay in the infertility diagnosis or the lack of a woman’s desire to seek treatment. We believe that multiple etiologies, including the concomitant health consequences or psychological factors that are attributable to obesity, might play a role in this issue.
In the current study, trends of higher gonadotropin consumption and longer stimulation durations were noted in the obese females, when compared with the normal weight women. Similar to our results, a higher dose of gonadotropin stimulation and a longer stimulation duration were reported in the women with BMIs = 25–29.9 kg/m2, when compared with the women with normal BMIs [15, 16]. Additionally, it was also shown that a higher dose of gonadotropin stimulation and longer stimulation duration were required in women with BMIs >30 kg/m2, when compared with women having normal BMIs [15, 16]. Nevertheless, Farhi et al. reported no statistically significant differences in the dose of gonadotropin stimulation in women with BMIs ≥25 kg/m2, compared with women with BMIs <25 kg/m2 [17]. Therefore, an increase in the gonadotropin dose and stimulation duration might be more prominent in obese than overweight patients; however, the majority of studies in this context do not discriminate isolated obesity from the patients with PCOS. Since PCOS is frequently associated with an increased BMI, it might be essential to evaluate those patients independently, in order to delineate the impact of isolated obesity on IVF-ICSI outcomes. In order to address this question, a multiple regression analysis was performed, including both the BMI and PCOS. Similar to our results, Loh et al. (2002) reported a significant increase in the gonadotropin dose and duration of stimulation, with BMIs >30 kg/m2 in non-PCOS patients [18].
With regard to the IVF-ICSI treatment outcomes, we did not find any significant differences in the number of retrieved oocytes, number of MII oocytes, proportion of oocytes fertilized, embryo grades, and cycle cancelation across the BMI categories. Currently, the literature lacks consensus on the effects of obesity on IVF-ICSI treatment outcomes. Although some studies have revealed a lower number of oocytes retrieved in overweight and obese women [10, 15], other studies were not able to show such a difference in the number of oocytes retrieved among the different BMI groups [19–21]. Another concern is whether obesity affects oocyte maturity or not. Dokras et al. have shown that the number of mature oocytes was significantly reduced in morbidly obese women [20]; whereas, Metwally et al. have shown that obesity did not have any significant effects on the oocyte quality [22]. Studies have also assessed the impact of the BMI on the fertilization rate. Matalliotakis et al. recently found a significantly reduced fertilization rate in women with BMIs of at least 24 kg/m2, when compared with those with BMIs of less than 24 kg/m2 (58.9 vs. 51.7 %) [10]. However, most of the other studies did not report a significant difference in the fertilization rates between the obese or overweight women and the normal women [15, 20, 21]. Likewise, some studies have reported decreased embryo quality in obese and overweight women [23], but the majority of studies, again, did not show any significant effects with regard to this issue [24, 25]. Consequently, there is largely conflicting evidence regarding the effects of a raised BMI on the IVF-ICSI outcomes.
Rittenberg et al. recently conducted a meta-analysis in order to explore the effects of the BMI on IVF treatment outcomes [8]. They found significant reductions in the clinical pregnancies and an increase in the miscarriage rates in the women with BMIs of 25–29.9 kg/m2 and ≥30 kg/m2, when compared to the women with normal BMIs. Although we observed a decreasing trend in the clinical and ongoing pregnancy rates in the normal through obese women, the differences did not reach statistical significance in our study. Similarly, the spontaneous abortion rates were found to be comparable between the groups.
We analyzed only the first fresh ART cycle of every patient who met the inclusion criteria, to minimize the confusing effects caused by the history of repeatedly failed or cryo-preserved cycles. Additionally, in women older than 38 years of age, which may specifically affect the duration of ovarian stimulation, gonadotropin dose and cancellation, and the implantation rates, were excluded from the analyses. Despite these measures, our study has several limitations, mainly due to its retrospective nature (e.g., missing data), as well as its relatively small sample size and difficulty in controlling the prior dose, type, and overall amount of gonadotropin administered. The gonadotropin starting dose is usually chosen according to the woman’s age, BMI, and markers of ovarian reserve, including the antral follicle count. However, we were unable to measure the anti-mullerian hormone (AMH) levels at our institution, which might complicate the evaluation of the association between the total gonadotropin dose and the BMI. In addition, the evaluation of the obesity in a cohort of patients, excluding the poor responders, would be still appropriate. Furthermore, prospective investigations with a larger sample size of obese patients (considering abdominal obesity, adipokines and uterine environment) and more BMI cut-off points might be necessary to intrinsically explore the effects of obesity on women’s reproduction potential with regard to ART.