Comparison of cabergoline and bromocriptine in patients with asymptomatic incidental hyperprolactinemia undergoing ICSI-ET

Abstract

We retrospectively assessed outcomes of in vitro fertilisation in groups of women with asymptomatic incidentally discovered hyperprolactinaemia (AIH) undergoing ovarian stimulation and ICSI-ET relative to the types of dopamine agonist and gonadotropin releasing hormone analogue used. Of 5840 women who underwent COH and ICSI-ET, 239 were included in the study; 122 had been treated with cabergoline, and 117 with bromocriptine, during the COH. The mean age, duration of stimulation, and total number of gonadotropin ampules employed were comparable in the two groups using the agonist and antagonist protocols, as were the number of oocytes retrieved and the proportion of mature MII and fertilised (2pn) oocytes. There were no significant differences in implantation, pregnancy, and miscarriage rates between the agonist and antagonist arms of the study. The cost of treatment was significantly higher with cabergoline than with bromocriptine (p = 0.0001). However, side effect rate was significantly higher with bromocriptine than with cabergoline (15.3% vs. 2.5%; p = 0.0004). In conclusion, we found that cabergoline and bromocriptine showed no differences in IVF outcomes and pregnancy results in patients with AIH.