Does flying after embryo transfer impact implantation?

Area of Science:

• Reproductive Medicine
• In Vitro Fertilization
• Clinical Outcomes

Background:

• Medical tourism for fertility treatments involves significant patient travel.
• Concerns exist regarding the impact of post-embryo transfer (ET) air travel on in vitro fertilization (IVF) outcomes.
• Understanding travel's effect is crucial for guiding patients undergoing fertility treatments.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the association between post-embryo transfer (ET) air travel and in vitro fertilization (IVF) success rates.
• To address patient and clinician concerns about the safety of air travel following IVF procedures.
• To provide evidence-based guidance for patients considering travel after ET.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective analysis of 2,135 embryo transfers (ET) at a fertility clinic in São Paulo, Brazil (January 2019 - March 2022).
• Patients were categorized into two groups: those who traveled by airplane post-ET and those who did not.
• Poisson regression models were used to compare IVF outcomes (pregnancy, implantation, miscarriage rates), adjusting for age and treatment reasons.

Main Results:

• Approximately 17.94% of patients traveled by air post-ET.
• No statistically significant differences were observed in pregnancy rates (61.99% vs. 62.14%, p=0.94) between groups.
• Implantation (34.58% vs. 38.65%, p=0.28) and miscarriage rates (28.51% vs. 32.50%, p=0.32) also showed no significant variations.
• Sub-analysis of single embryo transfers and top embryos yielded similar non-significant findings.

Conclusions:

• Post-embryo transfer (ET) air travel does not appear to negatively affect in vitro fertilization (IVF) outcomes.
• The findings suggest that patients can travel by air after ET without compromising treatment success.
• Further prospective research is recommended to validate these results and provide stronger clinical recommendations.