Unexplained infertility diagnosis is made in the presence of a normal semen analysis when tubal patency and normal ovulatory function are established. Among several potential causes, unexplained infertility could be attributed to vaginal pH and cervical mucus abnormalities. Although the vaginal canal and the cervix generally function as effective barriers to sperm, and although the production o...

OBJECTIVE To appraise critically the published randomized controlled trials (RCTs) reporting on the effectiveness of cervical mucus removal before embryo transfer. DESIGN Systematic review and meta-analysis of RCTs. SETTING Assisted reproduction technology (ART) units. PATIENT(S) Women undergoing embryo transfer after in vitro fertilization/intracytoplasmic sperm injection (IVF-ICSI). I...

The aim of this study was to investigate whether a relationship exists between the presence of low numbers of leukocytes in normal ovulatory cervical mucus and sperm quality and lipid content after migration. The percentages of live, motile and morphologically normal spermatozoa, movement parameters assessed by computer-aided sperm analysis (CASA), and ionophore-induced acrosome reaction measur...

Examinations of the cervical mucus for determining its quantity and physical characteristics are used to provide a clinical marker for the timing of ovulation. We propose that transvaginal ultrasound, which is routinely used as a tool for monitoring follicular growth in patients undergoing ovulation induction, might also be used simultaneously for estimating cervical mucus measurements. With no...

Embryo transfer and its related factors received little clinical attention and had been, until recently, the most inefficient step in in-vitro fertilization (IVF). Factors which appear to influence implantation rates are: contamination of the catheter tip with cervical bacteria, stimulation of uterine contractions during the procedure, the type of catheter, ultrasound guidance during the transf...

Movement characteristics of freely swimming spermatozoa were studied with high-speed cinemicrography. At 21 degrees C, flagellar beat frequency was higher in midcycle human cervical mucus than in native semen or Tyrode's solution; the beat shape differed, possessing diminished amplitude and wavelength. Although the spermatozoa swam straighter in the mucus, the progressive swimming speeds did no...

Forty-five dairy cows were used to compare the enzyme activity of alkaline phosphatase (ALP), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), α -amylase in the cervical mucus of cows during spontaneous and induced estrus using progestagen or PGF2 α and to determine whether these enzymes affect the fertility in cows with induced estrus, at the time of Al. The animals were assigned to 3 groups (no treatment, a Cres...