Vitamin D and assisted reproduction: should vitamin D be routinely screened and repleted prior to ART? A systematic review - 2014
Journal of Assisted Reproduction and Genetics December 2014
Michelle M. Pacis, Chelsea N. Fortin, Shvetha M. Zarek, Sunni L. Mumford, James H. Segars
Purpose
To review the current literature regarding the role of vitamin D status in pregnancy outcomes in women undergoing assisted reproductive technology (ART) and to assess cost-effectiveness of routine vitamin D deficiency screening and repletion prior to initiation of ART.
Methods
A systematic literature review was conducted using PubMed. Relevant study outcomes were compared among the selected studies. A cost-benefit analysis was performed using a decision tree mathematical model with sensitivity analyses from the perspective of direct societal cost. Published data were used to estimate probabilities and costs in 2014 US dollars.
Results
Thirty-four articles were retrieved, of which eight met inclusion criteria. One study demonstrated a negative relationship between vitamin D status and ART outcomes, while two studies showed no association. The remaining five studies concluded that ART outcomes improved after vitamin D repletion.
Conclusion
The majority of reviewed studies reported a decrement in ART outcomes in patients with vitamin D deficiency. Cost-benefit analyses suggested that screening and supplementing vitamin D prior to ART might be cost effective, but further evidence is needed. Given the absence of Level I evidence regarding vitamin D status and ART outcomes, full endorsement of routine vitamin D screening and supplementation prior to ART is premature.
Capsule
Vitamin D has been shown to play important roles in reproduction and vitamin D deficiency is a prevalent condition. A systematic review of vitamin D and ART outcomes yielded five studies that reported ART outcomes improved after vitamin D repletion, two studies found no association, and one study reported a negative association. Currently, Level I evidence is insufficient and a recommendation for routine vitamin D screening and supplementation prior to ART cannot be supported. There is a pressing need for additional studies of vitamin D replacement in this clinical scenario.
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ART helped by Vitamin D: 2 studies say yes, 1 study says no - May 2014
Vitamin D and assisted reproduction technologies: current concepts.
Reprod Biol Endocrinol. 2014 May 31;12:47. doi: 10.1186/1477-7827-12-47.
Vanni VS, Vigano' P1, Somigliana E, Papaleo E, Paffoni A, Pagliardini L, Candiani M.
Accumulating evidence from animal and human studies suggests that vitamin D is involved in many functions of the human reproductive system in both genders, but no comprehensive analysis of the potential relationship between vitamin D status and Assisted Reproduction Technologies (ART) outcomes is currently available. On this basis, the purpose of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to perform an in-depth evaluation of clinical studies assessing whether vitamin D status of patients undergoing ART could be related to cycle outcome variables. This issue is of interest considering that vitamin D deficiency is easily amenable to correction and oral vitamin D supplementation is cheap and without significant side effects. Surprisingly, no studies are currently available assessing vitamin D status among male partners of couples undergoing ART, while seven studies on vitamin D status of women undergoing controlled ovarian hyperstimulation (COH) for ART were found and included in the review. Results show that vitamin D deficiency is highly prevalent among women undergoing COH, ranging from 21% to 31% across studies conducted in Western countries and reaching 75-99% in Iranian studies. Data on vitamin D deficiency (25-hydroxyvitamin D serum levels <20 ng/ml) in relation to ART outcomes could be extracted from three studies and included in the meta-analysis, yielding a common risk ratio (RR) of 0.89 (95% CI 0.53-1.49) and showing a lower but not statistically significant likelihood of clinical pregnancy for vitamin-D-deficient women compared with vitamin-D-sufficient patients. In conclusion, there is insufficient evidence to support the routine assessment of vitamin D status to predict the clinical pregnancy rate in couples undergoing ART. The partly conflicting results of the available studies, potentially explaining the lack of statistical significance for a negative influence of vitamin D deficiency on clinical pregnancy rate, are likely secondary to confounders and insufficient sample size, and further larger cohort and randomised controlled studies are required.
PMID: 2488498
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See also Vitamin D Life
- IVF 4X more successful for white women with lots of vitamin D – Oct 2012
- In Vitro Fertilization (D5 SET ICSI) 40 percent more successful if high vitamin D – Sept 2014
- Vitamin D somewhat assists reproduction – both the mother and the father – May 2014
- Search Vitamin D Life for "Assisted reproduction" 209 items as of Sept 2018
- Assisted Reproduction might be aided by Vitamin D – review Dec 2014