New trigger for ovulation could make IVF safer

Researchers have successfully used a new and potentially safer method to stimulate ovulation in women undergoing IVF treatment. Twelve babies have been born after their mothers were given an injection of the natural hormone kisspeptin to make their eggs mature. Doctors normally administer another hormone, hCG, for this purpose, but in some women, there is a risk that this can overstimulate the ovaries, with potentially life-threatening consequences. Scientists at Imperial College London and clinicians at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust tested the new method in 53 healthy volunteers at Hammersmith Hospital in London. The study, funded by the Medical Research Council , the National Institute for Health Research and the Wellcome Trust , is published today in the Journal of Clinical Investigation . One in six couples in the UK experiences infertility, and 48,147 women underwent IVF treatment in 2011. Ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS) affects around a third of IVF patients in a mild form, causing symptoms such as nausea and vomiting.
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