Hormone levels of follicular fluids with and without oocytes in patients who received gonadotropin-releasing hormone analogues and gonadotropins in an in vitro fertilization program

Abstract

Background: Are follicles where no oocytes are retrieved "empty follicles"?

Methods: The levels of estradiol (E2), progesterone (P), testosterone (T), cortisol (F), and prolactin (PRL) of follicular fluids (FF) aspirated individually from 34 randomly selected IVF patients in whom no oocytes were recovered were compared with the respective hormone levels of FF obtained from the same patients when oocytes were retrieved. Two FF without oocytes of a 35th patient in whom no oocytes were retrieved were analyzed.

Results: Hormones did not differ significantly in the paired samples, while in the two FF of the 35th woman they were in agreement with cystic follicles.

Conclusions: It is necessary to differentiate aspirated follicles where no oocytes are retrieved from the "empty follicle syndrome," which was not observed in the IVF series studied and should be rare in IVF patients.