Live births after vaginal progesterone Cyclogest suppository versus Crinone gel for luteal phase support following cleavage and blastocyst cryopreserved embryo transfer (CET); a retrospective comparative study.

OBJECTIVE

To compare the clinical outcomes, including pregnancy rate, live birth rate, and miscarriage rate between vaginal progesterone Cyclogest suppository and Crinone vaginal progesterone gel as LPS in frozen-thawed embryo transfer in Intra-Cytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI) cycles.

METHODS

In this comparative retrospective chart review, 283 women who had frozen-thawed embryo transfer were assessed. The patients were divided into two groups based on the route of progesterone administration used as LPS. When the endometrial thickness reached ≥8mm, vaginal progesterone Cyclogest 400 mg/twice daily suppository was administered in one group; in another group, vaginal progesterone Crinone 8% 90 mg daily was administrated until a positive pregnancy test was confirmed. This was continued for 10-12 weeks after embryo transfer when fetal heart activity was detected by ultrasonography.

RESULTS

The patients' characteristics in the two groups were matched and there was no significant difference. The biochemical and clinical pregnancy, miscarriage, and live birth rates were similar-4.7% vs. 2.7%, p=0.464; 26.1% vs. 23.3%, p=0.638; 13.3% vs. 9.6%, p=0.410; 15.6% vs. 16.4%, p=0.872, respectively; there was no statistically significant difference between the vaginal progesterone Cyclogest group and the Crinone progesterone group.

CONCLUSIONS

Clinical pregnancy, biochemical pregnancy, miscarriage, and live birth rates were similar between both groups. Moreover, vaginal progesterone Cyclogest and Crinone 8% gel are equally effective in providing support during the luteal phase for both blastocysts and cleavage-stage embryos in CET.