Monitoring early production of chorionic gonadotrophin (HCG) following in vitro fertilization and embryo transfer.

A rapid, sensitive assay was developed for monitoring HCG production and applied to serum and urine collection between days 4 and 20 after OPU in 55 patients treated by ovarian hyperstimulation and IVF. Eleven ongoing pregnancies, 2 ectopic pregnancies and 1 clinical abortion resulted. The earliest detection of a rise in HCG was on day 7 after OPU. The HCG values showed that trophoblastic tissue functioned transiently in another 11 patients and probably in another 5. Thus evidence for functioning trophoblastic tissue was obtained in a total of 30 patients (55%). These findings are important for the further improvement of IVF. No antibodies to administered HCG were detected.