[Oocyte quality as a predictive marker for assessment of IVF/ICSI procedure outcome]

The technology of in vitro fertilization consists mainly of pick up, selection and insemination of oocytes, embryo culture and their transfer into recipient's womb. Before any further manipulation of oocytes their quality has to be accurately evaluated as it has direct impact on the monospermic fertilization, early development, establishment and maintenance of pregnancy. Criteria applied for oocyte quality assessment are subdivided into morphological, cellular and molecular. Morphological ones include the structure of oocyte: cumulus-oocyte complex, cytoplasm, firstpolarbody, perivitelline space, zona pellucida, and meiotic spindle. Morphological alterations may be related to the particular patient and the treatment cycle characteristics, to affect most or all oocytes in the cohort. The aim of the resent review is by summarizing available data from literature to investigate if non-invasive observation of any morphological feature or group of features of MII phase human oocytes has strong predictive value for further development and the in vitro procedure outcome.