IVF outcomes pre- and post-anti-COVID-19 vaccination – Are there any differences?

Abstract

Since the beginning of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, there have been rising concerns about the virus's possible ability to affect male and female fertility. Although effective vaccines were introduced and the vaccination rate of the general population is high, some reproductive-age individuals are still hesitant to receive the vaccine, because of an unestablished belief that the vaccine might impair fertility. In this single-center retrospective study, encompassing data from 387 medical files of in-vitro fertilization (IVF) patients we compared IVF cycle outcomes and sperm characteristics in vaccinated couples before and after vaccination, as well as between vaccinated patients and a control group of individuals who were neither vaccinated nor infected with COVID-19 before or during the cycles. We found no significant differences between vaccinated and non-vaccinated patients concerning the number of retrieved oocytes and the total motile sperm count (TMC). The mean number of retrieved oocytes showed a slight increase in the vaccinated group compared to the non-vaccinated control group (10.8 vs. 9.18, p = 0.14). Additionally, within the vaccinated group, no significant difference was observed in the mean number of oocytes before and after vaccination (9.7 and 10.8, p = 0.14). Other similar cycle outcomes between the groups were the rates of implantation, pregnancy, and ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome. This study emphasized that the mRNA anti-COVID-19 vaccination doesn’t adversely affect ovarian response or sperm quality in IVF patients. These findings contribute valuable insights to the safety profile of anti-COVID-19 vaccines in the context of reproductive-aged populations, aiding decision-making during ongoing virus outbreaks and potential future scenarios.