Unexplained infertility--the value of Pergonal superovulation combined with intrauterine insemination

Sixty-two women with unexplained infertility were studied. Fifteen (group 1) had timed intrauterine insemination (IUI), 25 (group 2) were treated by Pergonal (Serono Laboratories, Ltd., Welwyn Garden City, England) superovulation, and 22 (group 3) underwent Pergonal superovulation combined with IUI. Where Pergonal treatment was followed by insemination, a significantly greater pregnancy rate per cycle (P less than 0.05) was achieved, whether this group of patients was compared with those treated by IUI alone or with those treated with Pergonal alone. Moreover, the pregnancy rate in group 3 was comparable to that reported following gamete intrafallopian transfer (GIFT). The authors therefore suggest this form of treatment for patients with unexplained infertility prior to their referral to the more invasive procedure of GIFT.