Effectiveness of growth hormone in promoting endometrial growth in patients with endometrial dysplasia in frozen embryo transfer

Abstract

This study was designed to investigate the effect of growth hormone (GH) in promoting endometrial thickness, blood flow, and pregnancy outcome in patients with thin endometrium for frozen embryo transfer. Thirty-eight patients were recruited in the reproductive center of Jingzhou Hospital affiliated to Yangtze University who cancelled fresh embryo transfer due to thin endometrium and planned to undergo frozen-thawed embryo transfer (FET) from May 2019 to May 2020. The patients were randomly divided into the GH injection group (19 cases, endometrium preparation with hormone replacement therapy (HRT) and GH by subcutaneous injection) and the control group (19 cases, endometrium preparation with HRT). Both groups were similar in socio-demographic characteristics. After treatment, the thickness and volume of endometrium in the HRT & GH group were significantly increased (p < 0.05), and the growth rate was significantly higher than that in the control group (p < 0.05). The proportion of type A & B endometrium increased from 78.9% to 94.7% in the HRT & GH group. Moreover, the proportion of type Ⅰ and Ⅱ of endometrial blood perfusion in the HRT & GH group significantly increased compared with that before treatment. The human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) positive rate (47.4 vs. 42.1%) and clinical pregnancy rate (36.8% vs. 31.6%) were slightly higher in the HRT&GH group than that in the control group. In conclusion, for patients with thin endometrium, HRT combined with subcutaneous injection of GH can increase the thickness and volume of the endometrium, improving the blood perfusion of the endometrium. This may play a positive role in improving endometrial receptivity and pregnancy outcome.