Effects of emergency oocyte vitrification on embryo quality and developmental potential in assisted reproductive technology

GONG Fangqiang; HUANG Hua; LAO Yanping; SHI Li; NIU Xiangli

doi:10.3969/j.issn.1674-3806.2025.04.16

Abstract：Objective To explore the effects of emergency oocyte vitrification technique on embryo quality and developmental potential in assisted reproductive technology.Methods The clinical data of 55 patients(55 cycles,egg freezing group)who underwent emergency oocyte vitrification in the Reproduction Hospital of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region from April 2010 to May 2023 were retrospectively analyzed,and other 201 patients(201 cycles)who underwent intracytoplasmic sperm injection(ICSI)using fresh oocytes during the same period were randomly selected as control group.The results of ICSI after resuscitation of frozen oocytes were analyzed,and fertilization,embryo development and clinical pregnancy outcomes were compared between the two groups.Results A total of 55 cycles of oocytes were frozen,of which 12 cycles were still frozen without being thawed,and the remaining 43 cycles had a total of 450 oocytes and all of them were thawed,of which 400 oocytes survived,and the recovery rate was 88.89％.The number of transplanted embryos in the egg freezing group was larger than that in the control group,but the high-quality embryo rate,blastocyst formation rate and available blastocyst rate were lower than those in the control group,with significant differences between the two groups(P＜0.05).There were no significant differences in fertilization rate and normal cleavage rate between the two groups(P＞0.05).The cycle rate of untransplantable embryos,clinical pregnancy rate and ectopic pregnancy rate in the egg freezing group were lower than those in the control group,but the differences were not statistically significant(P＞0.05).The transplanting rate of the egg freezing group was significantly lower than that of the control group(P＜0.05).There were no significant differences in abortion rate,live birth rate,gestational week,birth weight and birth defect rate between the two groups(P＞0.05).Conclusion Emergency oocyte vitrification may cause some damages to the embryos,but their clinical outcomes are still similar to those of fresh oocytes.Emergency oocyte vitrification is a remedy for the absence of sperms on the day of egg retrieval and an effective way to preserve female fertility.