Ovulation promotion in infertility

    One of the drugs used in ovulation treatment is clomiphene citrate, which is used clinically with a cumulative yield of about 30% and 70-85% of pregnancies in the first three cycles. However, the disadvantage is that clomiphene has the potential to be resistant or ineffective. However, regardless of resistance or ineffectiveness, after 3-6 cycles of ovulation treatment, the next step of ovulation treatment should be continued. However, in patients with PCOS, there has been controversy on whether to use clomiphene or metformin in the use of the drug because of the insulin resistance phenomenon. Studies have shown that the use of clomiphene is superior to metformin in guiding ovulation and achieving live births and that the combination of the two is not significantly superior. However, the actual clinical application depends on the actual situation, for example, metformin is more effective in women who are obese (BMI greater than or equal to 25). The disadvantage of using clomiphene is that it has anti-estrogenic effect, which may make the endometrium thinner and may also make the cervical mucus sticky, etc. Liang Yujie, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Yueqing People’s Hospital Another drug is letrozole, which can be used in patients who are resistant or ineffective to clomiphene. It is used from the third to the seventh day of menstruation and has the same ovulation rate and cumulative yield rate as clomiphene. In recent years, studies on letrozole have shown that it has similar effects to clomiphene and low adverse effects, but the instructions for letrozole are not ovulation-promoting, so it is important to clarify with the patient that the application of this drug is off-label and should be used only with the patient’s consent.  There is also a gonadotropin, HMG, which can be used in combination with clomiphene plus HMG if clomiphene is not used successfully. If HMG is used alone, the dose must be controlled and should not exceed 75 mg at a time, but should be used in small and gradually increasing doses. If more than 4 follicles larger than 16mm are found, try not to use HMG, otherwise, it will make the patient more prone to overstimulation and the chance of overstimulation can reach 70-80%, leading to an increase in follicles, followed by an increase in estrogen, angiotensin, etc., with adverse consequences such as pleural fluid, ascites, and even thrombosis. Director Qiao precisely summarized the principles of using HMG: starting with a small dose, gradually increasing, timely termination of HCG treatment, and avoiding hyperstimulation syndrome.  For surgical treatment: laparoscopic ovarian perforation (LOD) is recommended, and after perforation, the pregnancy rate at 6 cycles is equal to the use of ovulation-promoting drugs.