Does autoimmune disease affect in vitro fertilization results in normo-responder cases?

Abstract

Aims: This study aimed to assess the effects of autoimmune disorders on pregnancy outcomes in infertile women undergoing in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment. Methods: This retrospective cohort study was conducted between March 2022 and September 2023, involving 90 infertile women without autoimmune diseases as a control group and 96 infertile women with autoimmune diseases as a case group. The study investigated the impact of autoimmune diseases on IVF treatment outcomes. Single embryo transfer (ET) was performed on the fifth day in all patients. Autoimmune diseases included in this study as Hashimoto's disease, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Sjogren's syndrome, Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), Ulcerative Colitis, and Behcet's disease. Results: There was no statistically significant association between the case and control groups regarding live birth rate (p>0.05). Similarly, no statistically significant association was found between the case and control groups concerning the clinical pregnancy rate (p>0.05). Our results revealed that total oocyte, pronuclear (PN), and metaphase II (MII) oocyte rates were statistically significantly higher in healthy infertile women (p<0.05). The number of attempts, anti mullerian (AMH) levels, total gonadotropin dose, and total days were similar between the groups (p>0.05). Conclusion: Autoimmune diseases do not significantly affect pregnancy outcomes in women undergoing IVF. However, several factors, such as total oocyte, PN, and MII oocytes, clinical pregnancy rate (CPR), and live birth rate (LBR) levels, support the association between autoimmune diseases and IVF outcomes.