Autologous ovarian platelet rich plasma treatment improves oocyte and embryo quality: a before-after prospective study

Abstract

Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) is used for successful regeneration of female reproductive tissues. However, little is known about the effect of ovarian PRP treatment on oocyte and embryo quality. The objective of our study was to assess the role of autologous ovarian PRP treatment on ovarian reserve and number and quality of oocytes and embryos in women with poor ovarian response (POR) undergoing in-vitro fertilization cycles. A total of 66 women with POR were treated with ovarian PRP injection in two subsequent menstrual cycles. The antral follicle counts, serum anti-Mullerian hormone, follicle-stimulating hormone levels, fertilization rate, number and quality of oocytes, and embryos were assessed and compared between the cycle before and after PRP treatment. Ovarian PRP treatment resulted in insignificantly lower follicle-stimulating hormone levels, significantly higher antral follicle count, anti-Mullerian hormone, number of retrieved oocytes, and insignificantly higher fertilization rate. However, the mean number of Day 5 embryos (2.19 ± 1.45 vs. 1.58 ± 1.30, p = 0.01), the percentage of high-quality oocytes (45.29% ± 42.40% vs. 15.21% ± 30.24%, p < 0.01) and the percentage of grade-I blastocysts (52.10% ± 37.94% vs. 12.86% ± 22.97%, p < 0.01) were significantly higher after PRP treatment in comparison to the pretreatment period. Moreover, the mean MII oocyte quality (1.60 ± 0.54 vs. 2.31 ± 0.63, p < 0.01) and mean blastocyst quality (1.53 ± 0.45 vs. 2.42 ± 0.63, p < 0.01) were significantly improved in the post-treatment period. In conclusion, the applied autologous ovarian PRP treatment in poor responders may significantly improve oocyte and embryo quality.