IVF procedure can increase clinical pregnancy by 20 per cent

PA 313/13 - A procedure called endometrial scratching significantly improves the clinical pregnancy rate — including the numbers of babies born — when performed just once in women who are undergoing assisted reproductive treatment, a study involving a University of Nottingham researcher has found. Results from the clinical trial, undertaken by a team of Brazilian scientists in collaboration with Dr Nick Raine-Fenning of the Nottingham University Research and Treatment Unit (NURTURE), demonstrate a significant benefit to the timing of endometrial scratching, reporting an increase in the clinical pregnancy rate of women undergoing IVF and ICSI treatment to 49 per cent, compared with the current average (29 per cent). The study, being presented at the ISUOG World Congress in Sydney was also found to increase the number of live births from the current average of 23 per cent to a reported 42 per cent. Study co-author Dr Raine-Fenning said: "This is the first well-designed trial conducted into endometrial scratching and the results are promising. Other trials have provided anecdotal evidence, but these have been limited and many questioned the validity of the technique. We are now carrying out a follow up study in Nottingham to provide further guidance into the use of endometrial scratching and early results are encouraging." Endometrial scratching, or injury, is defined as medically administered damage to the inner lining of the womb and was first demonstrated as a beneficial procedure in reproductive medicine in 2003.