Comparison of two different starting doses of recombinant follicle stimulating hormone (rFSH) for intrauterine insemination (IUI) cycles in non-obese women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS): a retrospective cohort study

We aimed to compare the efficacy of two different starting doses of recombinant follicle stimulating hormone (rFSH), 37.5 vs. 75 international units (IU) for intrauterine insemination (IUI) cycles in non-obese women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). A total of 109 women who underwent first rFSH stimulated IUI cycle were included in this retrospective cohort study. The primary outcome measure was the clinical pregnancy rate. No significant difference was found in terms of clinical pregnancy rate between the two groups (22% for the 37.5-IU group and 24% for the 75-IU group, respectively, p = .808). There was no significant difference in monofollicular development rate among the groups (p = .354). The total rFSH consumption was lower in the 37.5-IU group compared to the 75-IU group (p< .001). There was no statistically significant difference in pregnancy rates between the 37.5-IU and 75-IU groups in both normal weight (BMI: 19–24.9 kg/m2) and overweight (BMI: 25–29.9 kg/m2) women (p = .889 and .518, respectively). These results suggest that the starting doses of 37.5 and 75 IU of rFSH do not show significant difference in clinical pregnancy rates in non-obese PCOS women undergoing IUI cycles.Impact Statement What is already known on this subject? Low-dose gonadotropin treatment is advised for women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). However, there are few comparative data on the efficacy of different starting doses of recombinant follicle stimulating hormone (rFSH) for intrauterine insemination (IUI) cycles in PCOS women. What the results of this study add? There was no statistically significant difference in pregnancy rates of non-obese patients with PCOS having IUI whether rFSH was started at 37.5 or 75 international units (IU). What the implications are of these findings for clinical practice and/or further research? A starting dose of 37.5 IU of rFSH may be a reasonable approach for IUI cycles in non-obese PCOS women

Speculator and influencer evaluation in stock market by using social media

Social media platforms are places where people post their feelings and thoughts about a topic. The institutions, organizations, individuals, or companies that are the subject of these ideas are affected by these posts. As discussed in different studies, companies in stock exchange markets are affected by the posts made on these social media platforms. At the same time, individuals who are aware of this fact, namely speculators and influencers, may make profit by manipulating the truth. In this study, possible speculators or influencers using the Twitter social media platform are investigated. As the target companies, Google, Amazon, Apple, Tesla, and Microsoft were chosen, which are among the largest companies on the NASDAQ stock exchange market. In the study, asentiment analysis using the Loughran and McDonald sentiment analysis dictionary was utilized. The sentiment analysis results were used to model different machine learning algorithms. With the models, individuals who had too many positive or negative effects as possible speculators or influencers were identified. The study was performed for 5 years of data. The results indicates that (1) without noise reduction, it is not possible to establish a correlation on individual tweets and their effects on the stock market; (2) it is not possible to establish a correlation between the number of tweets and the volume of companies; (3) the effect of threshold on the accuracy, which has been done and proven in different studies, has also been proven in this study; (4) RBF Kernel SVM method gives better result than other machine learning methods

Does Intrauterine Insemination Timing Matter for Achieving Pregnancy During Ovulation Induction Using Gonadotropins? A Retrospective Cohort Study

Background: Intrauterine insemination (IUI) is a commonly used procedure to increase the infertile couples' chance of pregnancy. Single or double insemination and different timing choices are modifications of this intervention. The aim of this study was to elucidate the effect of the IUI procedure on clinical pregnancy rates when performed at 24 hours or 36 hours after ovulation triggered by human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) following ovulation induction with gonadotropins. Methods: One hundred and thirteen women diagnosed with polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) (as per Rotterdam's criteria) or unexplained infertility, who were treated using gonadotropins for ovulation induction and MI for increasing fertilization potential, were recruited from the medical records of the infertility clinic. Demographic features, cycle outcomes, and clinical pregnancy rates of the patients were compared based on two different timing strategies of MI (24 hours and 36 hours) following ovulation trigger using hCG. Results: Clinical pregnancy rates per cycle were 22.9% in the PCOS group and 26.9% in the unexplained group. The clinical pregnancy rates according to the timing of MI were found to be similar for PCOS patients, unlike patients with unexplained infertility whose clinical pregnancy rates were significantly better when the MI procedure was performed 24 hours following the hCG trigger. The cycle day of hCG trigger was also found to be significantly related to clinical pregnancy rate as utilizing a later hCG trigger day appeared to positively affect the odds of clinical pregnancy establishment. Conclusion: IUI performed at either 24 hours or 36 hours after ovulation triggered by hCG injection does not change clinical pregnancy rates for PCOS patients. Patients with unexplained infertility seem to benefit from earlier IUI procedures, which increases their fertility potential during ovulation induction with gonadotropins. Avoiding earlier than physiologically needed artificial-hCG triggering before IUI procedures results with better pregnancy rates. Copyright (C) 2016, the Chinese Medical Association. Published by Elsevier Taiwan LLC.Wo

Evaluation Of Time Lapse For Establishing Distal Tubal Occlusion Diagnosis During Hysterosalpingography Procedure Performed By Using Water Soluble Contrast Media

Background: Hysterosalpingography (HSG) is the most frequently used diagnostic measure for simultaneously determining uterine abnormalities and tubal status among subfertile women. Despite several broader advantages such as availability and increased experience, the subjectivity involved during administration of the HSG procedure itself, and necessary imaging review, decreases the reliability and accuracy of HSG. In this study, we evaluated the time intervals between X-ray imaging during HSG procedure to establish the presence of distal tubal occlusion. Methods: Our study evaluated the HSG records of 89 women who underwent diagnostic laparoscopy for infertility work-up. Patients who were diagnosed with distal tubal occlusion upon receiving HSG and patients who demonstrated tubal patency on HSG were included in the study, to compare the time intervals in seconds from the tubal visualization view to the last fluoroscopic X-ray shot during the HSG procedure with tubal patency on diagnostic laparoscopy. Results: A statistically significant correlation regarding tubal patency between HSG procedures and diagnostic laparoscopy chromopertubation procedures was demonstrated. Although nearly statistically significant, the interval in seconds between the first HSG imaging and distal tubal filling was shorter for patients with patent tubes on diagnostic laparoscopy than patients with bilateral tubal occlusion (8.4 31.9 and 12.0 19.7, respectively; p = 0.057). Time period intervals between the first and the last HSG, and between distal tubal filling to the last HSG of patients with patent tubes on diagnostic laparoscopy and patients with bilateral distal tubal occlusion were found to be statistically similar. Conclusion: Although a trend exists towards shorter time period intervals between the first uterine visualization and distal tubal filling graphy among patients with tubal patency, rather than patients with distal tubal occlusion confirmed by diagnostic laparoscopy, clinically reliable objective time period intervals for finalizing the HSG procedure and proceeding with diagnostic laparoscopy due to distal tubal occlusion diagnosis on HSG could not be detected. (C) 2016, the Chinese Medical Association. Published by Elsevier Taiwan LLC.Wo

Association between adverse perinatal outcomes and amino acid levels measured with nutrient questionnaire in adolescent pregnancies

Background: To evaluate the maternal serum amino acid levels in first trimester adolescent pregnancies by using a new developed dietary questionnaire. Methods: A group of 169 pregnant women in the first trimester of their pregnancy were asked to complete the dietary questionnaire. Among all the women, 39 were adolescent pregnancies. The results of the questionnaire were evaluated by a nutrient database program (BeBiS software program) designed to evaluate Turkish traditional foods and commercial processed foods. Results: There was no statistically significant difference between the groups in terms of body mass index and educational and socio-economic status. The mean age and gravidity was statistically significantly lower in adolescent pregnancies. The mean isoleucine, leucine, lysine, methionine, phenylalanine, tyrosine, threonine, valine, arginine, and proline levels were statistically significantly lower in adolescent pregnancies. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis showed the cut-off values of these amino acids. Of these amino acids; lower values of histidine, serine, and alanine were associated with lower birth weight, and lower values of histidine and alanine were associated with preterm delivery. Conclusion: To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study evaluating the amino acid levels in adolescent pregnancies. According to this study, some amino acid levels were lower in adolescent pregnancies and associated with adverse perinatal outcomes. Further studies with maternal and perinatal outcomes are needed to demonstrate the effects of these amino acids in such pregnancies

Clomiphene Citrate Treatment Cycle Outcomes of Polycystic Ovary Syndrome Patients Based on Basal High Sensitive C-Reactive Protein Levels: A Cross-Sectional Study

Background: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is highly associated with an ovulatory infertility, features of the metabolic syndrome, including obesity, insulin resistance and dyslipidemia. Serum concentrations of high sensitive C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) were significantly higher in obese than in non-obese PCOS patients at baseline, suggesting a relationship between elevated hs-CRP levels and obesity. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether cycle day 3 hs-CRP levels before clomiphene citrate (CC) treatment would predict cycle outcomes in women with PCOS