Artificial oocyte activation technology as adjuvant therapy for primary ciliary dyskinesia: a report of eight cases and literature review.

OBJECTIVE

To explore the clinical application effect and feasibility of intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) combined with artificial oocyte activation (AOA) technology in the treatment of male infertility caused by primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD).

CASES REPORT

Between April 2022 and April 2024, our hospital's reproductive center treated a total of eight patients diagnosed with PCD and concurrent male infertility. Among them, six patients were treated with ICSI in conjunction with AOA as an adjuvant therapy, with their oocytes being subjected to ionomycin treatment for a duration of 15 min post-ICSI. One patient underwent ICSI alone, while another patient chose to use donor sperm. Ultimately, we assessed the fertilization rates and transferable embryo rates of all patients. The statistical results showed that the six patients who received ICSI combined with AOA achieved an average fertilization rate of 77.9% and a transferable embryo rate of 66.7%. Four of these patients achieved clinical pregnancy and live birth after embryo transfer. In contrast, the patient who received only ICSI had a fertilization rate of 51.7% and a transferable embryo rate of 20%.

CONCLUSIONS

AOA can be used as an adjuvant treatment in ICSI cycles for patients with PCD accompanied by male infertility. It not only increases the fertilization rate but also potentially improves embryo quality, thereby enhancing the transferable embryo rate.