Luteal-phase support in assisted reproduction treatment: real-life practices reported worldwide by an updated website-based survey

Abstract An updated worldwide web-based survey assessed the real-life clinical practices regarding luteal-phase supplementation (LPS) in assisted reproduction. This survey looked for changes since a former survey conducted nearly 3 years earlier. The survey questions were: If you support the luteal phase, when do you start the regimen you are using?; Which agent/route is your treatment of choice to support the luteal phase?; If you use vaginal progesterone, which formulation do you use?; and How long you continue progesterone supplementation if the patient conceived? Data were obtained from 408 centres (82 countries) representing 284,600 IVF cycles/year. The findings were: (i) most practitioners (80% of cycles) start LPS on the day of egg collection; (ii) in >90%, a vaginal progesterone product is used (77% as a single agent and 17% in combination with i.m. progesterone), while human chorionic gonadotrophin as a single agent for LPS is not being used at all; and (iii) in 72% of cycles, LPS is administered until 8–10 weeks’ gestation or beyond. When compared with the initial survey, the results of this survey are encouraging as there is a clear shift towards a more unified and evidence-based approach to LPS in IVF cycles. This updated worldwide web-based survey assessed the actual real-life clinical practices regarding luteal-phase supplementation (LPS) in assisted reproduction. Specifically, this survey looked for changes since an initial survey conducted nearly 3 years earlier. The survey included the following questions: If you support the luteal phase, when do you start the regimen you are using?; Which agent/route is your treatment of choice to support the luteal phase?; If you use vaginal progesterone, which formulation do you use?; and How long you continue progesterone supplementation if the patient conceived? Data from 408 centres in 82 countries representing a total of 284,600 IVF cycles/year were included. Most practitioners (80% of cycles) start LPS on the day of egg collection and in more than 90% a vaginal progesterone product is used for LPS (in 77% as a single agent and in 17% in combination with i.m. progesterone). As a single agent for LPS, human chorionic gonadotrophin is not being used at all. Regarding the duration of supplementation, in 72% of cycles, LPS is administered until 8–10 weeks’ gestation or beyond. When compared with the initial survey from 2009, the results of this updated survey are encouraging as there is a clear shift to