Treatment outcomes of intrauterine insemination and pregnancy prognosis factors: a retrospective single-center cohort study

Abstract

Although intrauterine insemination (IUI) utilizing the husband's semen is widely used as a general fertility treatment, there are no clear policies determining the appropriate number of IUI cycles or a selection criteria for couples at our institution. In this study we investigated IUIs performed at our facilities in the past 3 years, and examined prognostic factors for pregnancy based on age, number of inseminations, and semen findings. A total of 341 patients who underwent 1,229 cycles of IUIs performed at our institution between January 2016 and December 2018 were included. The pregnancy rate was 6.2% per cycle and 21.1% per couple. In terms of age, we noted both men and women contributed to a decrease in the pregnancy rate with increasing age, but the effects of aging tended to be slightly less pronounced in men. The cumulative pregnancy rate for the number of times insemination was performed was approximately 50% by the second cycle, and 90% by the sixth. Assessment of semen analysis showed significant differences in motility and adjusted recovered sperm concentration (P<0.05).