Factors affecting the distribution of serum anti-müllerian hormone levels among infertile Asian women: a multi-nation, multi-centre, and multi-ethnicity prospective cohort study

Abstract STUDY QUESTION How do age, ethnicity, and other characteristics affect serum anti-mullerian hormone (AMH) levels in Asian women undergoing fertility treatment? SUMMARY ANSWER Age, ethnicity, obesity (BMI ≥ 30 kg/m2), and polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) significantly impacted serum AMH levels, with the rate of decrease accelerating as age increased; a concentration of 4.0 ng/ml was the optimal cut-off for diagnosis of PCOS. WHAT IS KNOWN ALREADY There are significant differences in ovarian reserve among women from different races and ethnicities, and Asian women often have poorer reproductive outcomes during assisted reproductive treatment cycles. STUDY DESIGN, SIZE, DURATION A population-based multi-nation, multi-centre, multi-ethnicity prospective cohort study of 4613 women was conducted from January 2020 to May 2021. Infertile women of 20–43 years of age were enrolled. The exclusion criteria included: age 43, non-Asian ethnicity, and missing critical data. PARTICIPANTS/MATERIALS, SETTING, METHODS Participants were Asian women of Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Thai, Vietnamese, Malay, Indian, and Indonesian ethnicities from 12 IVF centres across Asia. These women were all naïve to ovarian stimulation cycles and attended IVF centres for fertility assessment. The AMH measurement was performed using an AMH automated assay on a clinically validated platform. MAIN RESULTS AND THE ROLE OF CHANCE A total of 4556 infertile Asian women were included in the final analyses. The mean ± SD for serum AMH concentrations (ng/ml) across specific age groups were: overall, 3.44 ± 2.93; age