Investigating the Effectiveness of Intraovarian Injection of Platelet-Rich Plasma (PRP) on Improving Ovarian Reserve in Infertile Women Due to Decreased Ovarian Reserve

Abstract

Background: Injection of platelet-rich plasma (PRP) into the ovary is a therapeutic strategy to increase the fertility of infertile women. PRP also regulates the expression of sex hormones, including follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) and anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH), through growth factors and cytokines. Objectives: In this study, we evaluated the effect of PRP injection on increasing ovarian reserve in infertile patients. Methods: This semi-experimental study was conducted on 17 infertile women referred to Nikan Hospital between 2021 and 2022 who were candidates for PRP due to reduced ovarian reserve. After ovarian puncture, 3 cc of PRP was injected. In the third menstrual cycle, after checking the FSH and AMH serum levels and the presence of at least one antral follicle count (AFC) in the ultrasound, the patients underwent the ovulation stimulation cycle again. The improvement of the ovarian response was determined by evaluating the parameters of the number and quality of retrieved oocytes, the number and quality of the obtained embryos, the serum levels of AMH and FSH, and the number of AFC in ultrasound. The relevant data were then entered into SPSS26 software for analysis. Results: The average age of the participants was 36.94 ± 3.76 years, and the average Body Mass Index (BMI) was 22.36 ± 2.89 kg/m2. The results showed that the average AFC, the average number of oocytes retrieved in IVF, and the average number of embryos obtained in IVF increased significantly after PRP intraovarian injection (P = 0.009). Additionally, the mean FSH level after PRP intraovarian injection was significantly reduced (P = 0.014). However, the average AMH level did not change significantly after PRP intraovarian injection (P = 0.661). Conclusions: Based on this study, it appears that PRP intraovarian injection can improve ovarian reserve and increase the number of oocytes and embryos.