comparison pregnancy outcomes between minimal stimulation protocol and conventional gnrh antagonist protocols in poor ovarian responders

objective: to compare the pregnancy outcomes achieved by in vitro fertilization (ivf) between minimal stimulation and conventional antagonist protocols in poor ovarian responders (pors). materials and methods: in this randomized controlled trial, 77 pors undergoing ivf were selected and divided into two groups. first group was the minimal stimulation group (n = 42) receiving 100 mg/day clomiphene citrate on day 2of the cycle for 5 day that was followed by150iu/day human menopausal gonadotropin (hmg) on day 5 of the cycle. second group was the conventional group (n = 35) receiving at least 300 iu/daygonadotropin on day 2 of the cycle. gonadotropin-releasing hormone (gnrh) antagonist protocol was applied for both groups according to flexible protocol. number of retrieved oocytes and chemical pregnancy rate were the main outcomes. results: there was no difference in number ofretrieved oocyte and pregnancy rate (2.79 ± 1.96 vs. 2.20 ± 1.71 and 5.6% vs. 4.1%; p > 0.05) between both groups. the gonadotropin dose used in the minimal stimulation group was lower than conventional group (1046 ± 596 vs. 2806 ± 583). conclusion: minimal stimulation protocol with lower gonadotropin used is likely to be considered as a patient- friendly and cost-effective substitute for pors.