A new method to increase womb thickness also increases pregnancy rates

This study shows that treatment with a natural protein called G-CSF increases womb thickness and pregnancy rates in women with a thin womb lining. 

In-Vitro Fertilization (IVF) involves harvesting mature eggs from the female, fertilizing the eggs with the male's sperm in a lab dish, and then implanting the fertilized eggs into the endometrium (womb) lining three to five days after fertilization. The thickness of the endometrium lining plays an important role in supporting a pregnancy. The chances of pregnancy are lower in patients with a thin endometrial lining of less than 7 millimeters (mm) compared to patients with a thick lining (greater than 7 mm). Various treatments exist to increase endometrial thickness; however a small portion of patients do not respond to any treatment. G-CSF could be a new treatment for these patients, according to recent studies. 

In this study, 82 patients were diagnosed with a thin endometrial lining and 30 of these patients had a past history of cancelled embryo transfer. They were treated with a natural protein called G-CSF during their next frozen embryo transfer cycle. Half of these patients also received endometrial scratch treatment (the endometrium is gently ‘scratched’ using a thin plastic tube, this starts a ‘repair reaction’ which may increase embryo implantation rates).

Endometrial thickness increased significantly from 5.7 mm to 8.1 mm following G-CSF treatment. In addition, embryo implantation rates were higher in the G-CSF group (32%) compared to those that did not receive G-CSF (14%). Furthermore, clinical pregnancy rates were higher in the G-CSF group (48%) compared to those that did not receive G-CSF (25%).

Endometrial scratch treatment did not further increase endometrial thickness. However it did increase pregnancy rates (54% with endometrial scratch plus G-CSF compared to G-CSF alone) and live birth rates (39% with endometrial scratch plus G-CSF compared to G-CSF alone).

The authors concluded that G-CSF treatment may be beneficial for patients with thin endometrium.

Despite the results reported here, other studies have found that G-CSF treatment does not increase endometrial thickness or pregnancy rates. Therefore, more studies are needed to confirm these results. 

If you are considering alternative therapies such as G-CSF treatment to increase endometrial thickness, please discuss any questions with your doctor.