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Developing Study Assist Ability across Individual Health Biobanks during the COVID-19 Crisis.
The interface between genetics and human reproduction has gained significant relevance, but discussions are still needed on which procedures are clinically and ethically acceptable and how they should be regulated.OBJECTIVE Undescended testis (UDT) is a urogenital disease that affects fertility. This study looked into the cytogenetic abnormalities of Iranian infertile patients with UDT. METHODS Our study included 522 infertile patients with UDT (case group) and two control groups, one with 300 infertile men without UDT and another with 268 fertile men. RESULTS Chromosomal abnormalities were found in 45 patients with UDT (8.62%). Seven of the alterations were considered as normal features. Klinefelter syndrome and mosaicism were the most common anomalies. Chromosomal abnormalities were found in 31 infertile men in the control group (10.33%), 13 of which deemed normal and 18 (6%) anomalous. Nine chromosomal abnormalities were found in the second control group with fertile men (3.35%), six deemed normal and three (1.11%) anomalous. CONCLUSION Despite the high rate of abnormalities in infertile controls (6%) and the higher rate seen in infertile individuals with UDT indicate a significant prevalence of chromosomal abnormalities in the Iranian population, particularly when the literature suggests that the normal rate of abnormal karyotypes should be within the 0.7-1% range in the general population. The incidence of abnormal karyotypes increased when infertile patients had additional conditions such as UDT.OBJECTIVE Patients submitted to oncological fertility preservation with letrozole and gonadotropins seem to present a higher rate of immature oocytes and lower fertilization rates in comparison to infertile patients submitted to IVF cycles with gonadotropins. The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of letrozole on oocyte morphology in patients with breast cancer submitted to fertility preservation. METHODS Retrospective analysis performed at a public tertiary hospital in São Paulo, Brazil. The oocytes were retrieved from patients with breast cancer undergoing fertility preservation (n=69), and from infertile women undergoing in vitro fertilization (n=92). We evaluated 750 oocytes obtained from breast cancer patients submitted to ovarian stimulation with letrozole and gonadotropins, and 699 oocytes from patients without breast cancer submitted to ovarian stimulation for in vitro fertilization with gonadotropins only due to male factor infertility. The mature oocytes retrieved were analyzed for the human oocytes in IVF outcomes.OBJECTIVE To present clinical and laboratory data of a Brazilian social program for cancer fertility preservation. METHODS We carried out a descriptive observational study between July 2011 and December 2018. 246 patients were included from a social program in a private assisted reproduction clinic in Santo André/Brazil for oocyte cryopreservation before starting oncological treatment. RESULTS 246 cancer patients resorted to fertility preservation before initiating cancer treatment. These were diagnosed with 27 different types of cancer, and the breast type is the most prevalent. 2528 MII oocytes (mean of 10.3 oocytes per patient) were vitrified. Four patients thawed their oocytes to submit in vitro fertilization, three had embryos transferred and one achieved pregnancy. CONCLUSION Preservation of fertility offers patients, especially at reproductive age, a viable way to perform their cancer treatment without compromising future gestation. It is important that professionals duly counsel oncological patients so, if they wish, they can have the possibility to guarantee her fertility preserved.OBJECTIVES To evaluate the association between morphology grading and morphokinetic parameters in blastocyst stage embryos cultured in a time-lapse system. METHODS This retrospective cohort study included patients offered fertility treatment with autologous oocytes in our clinic between October 2017 and May 2019 using a time-lapse system. The embryos were morphologically graded according to the criteria developed by Gardner and Schoolcraft and their morphokinetic parameters were recorded. Selleckchem UNC8153 RESULTS Our results indicated that the time of pronuclei fading (tPNf), time to cleavage into two (t2), four (t4), and eight (t8) cells, and time to start of blastulation (tB) were significantly different according to the morphological quality of the blastocysts formed. In the early development stage, tPNf, t2 and t4 differed between good (AA, AB, BA, BB) and poor (CC) quality potential blastocysts. The 8-cell stage time separated embryos graded as AA blastocysts in terms of morphology from embryos graded as BB. Earlier tB correlated with higher quality embryos (AA, AB, BA). CONCLUSION Our results showed that the first kinetic parameters (tPNf, t2, and t4) distinguished top-graded from low-graded blastocysts. Between top-graded blastocysts, t8 separated BB blastocysts from AA blastocysts. And finally, tB also told apart BB blastocysts from AA, AB, and BA blastocysts. These time-related parameters may be applied even in centers without time-lapse systems.Covid-19 is a respiratory infectious disease that can cause respiratory, physical and psychological long-term dysfunctions in patients. First recommendations on respiratory management were published, but they were not based on the specific needs due to Covid-19. In this paper we share the early experiences from the clinical field in Northern Italy, where the epidemic started in February. This paper summarizes the second webinar on Covid-19 (230 live attendees, 11,600 viewers of the recorded version) organized by the Italian Society of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine about rehabilitation and in particular respiratory management in the acute (Intensive Care Unit - ICU) and immediate post-acute phases. There is the need to prepare for the post-acute phase. ICU length of stay is relatively long, with immobilisation in prone position. Some specific problems are described, including severe muscle weakness and fatigue, joint stiffness, dysphagia, (neuro)psychological problems, impaired functioning concerning mobility, activities of daily life and work.
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