{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,29]],"date-time":"2026-09-29T18:44:21Z","timestamp":1790707461683,"version":"4.1.0"},"reference-count":58,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2024,11,27]],"date-time":"2024-11-27T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1732665600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Reprod. Health"],"abstract":"\n Objectives<\/jats:title>\n Endometrial scratching (ES) and\/or intravenous intralipid therapy (in cases of increased uterine natural killer cells, uNKs) are still conducted in several fertility centers as \u201cadd-on\u201d treatments in patients undergoing ART, although convincing evidence for beneficial effects is lacking.<\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>\n \n Study design<\/jats:title>\n In this retrospective study, associations between ES treatment or additional intralipid therapy and pregnancy and live birth rates of 1,546 patients undergoing 2,821 IVF-\/ICSI-treatment cycles with fresh or frozen embryo transfers in a German fertility-center between 1st January 2014 and 31th May 2017 were analyzed.<\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>\n \n Results<\/jats:title>\n \n Overall pregnancy and live birth rates for all 2,821 treatment cycles (468 cycles with ES) were 32.8% and 23.5%. There were no statistically significant differences in pregnancy or live birth rates between first treatment cycles with and without ES (\n p<\/jats:italic>\n \u2009=\u20090.915 and\n p<\/jats:italic>\n \u2009=\u20090.577) or between second cycles following an unsuccessful first cycle with and without ES (\n p<\/jats:italic>\n \u2009=\u20090.752 and\n p<\/jats:italic>\n \u2009=\u20090.623). These results were confirmed using multivariable generalized estimating equations (GEE) models accounting for non-independency of multiple treatment cycles per patients that included all cycles and showed no significant effect of ES on pregnancy (\n p<\/jats:italic>\n \u2009=\u20090.449) or live birth rates (\n p<\/jats:italic>\n \u2009=\u20090.976). Likewise, a GEE model revealed no significant effect of intralipid treatment on pregnancy (\n p<\/jats:italic>\n \u2009=\u20090.926) and live birth rates (\n p<\/jats:italic>\n \u2009=\u20090.727).\n <\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>\n \n Conclusions<\/jats:title>\n Our results reveal no evidence that ES increases the pregnancy or live birth rates in women undergoing their first or further IVF cycle with fresh or frozen embryo transfer. Intralipid treatment was also not beneficial. Even if patients explicitly ask for it, these procedures are not recommended outside of clinical studies.<\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.3389\/frph.2024.1505842","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2024,11,27]],"date-time":"2024-11-27T01:33:40Z","timestamp":1732671220000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":2,"title":["Endometrial scratching and intralipid treatment\u2014no general recommendations"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"6","author":[{"given":"Paolina","family":"Mrosk","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Nathallie","family":"Sandi-Monroy","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Friedrich","family":"Gagsteiger","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Thomas Wolfram Paul","family":"Friedl","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Katharina","family":"Hancke","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Karin","family":"Bundschu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1965","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2024,11,27]]},"reference":[{"key":"B1","article-title":"dir-jahrbuch-2021-deutsch-1.pdf.","year":""},{"key":"B2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"14","DOI":"10.1016\/j.rbmo.2013.08.011","article-title":"Recurrent implantation failure: definition and management","volume":"28","author":"Coughlan","year":"2014","journal-title":"Reprod Biomed Online"},{"key":"B3","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"178","DOI":"10.1097\/GCO.0000000000000264","article-title":"Scratching and IVF: any role?","volume":"28","author":"Ko","year":"2016","journal-title":"Curr Opin Obstet Gynecol"},{"key":"B4","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"375","DOI":"10.1002\/uog.12539","article-title":"Endometrial scratching performed in the non-transfer cycle and outcome of assisted reproduction: a randomized controlled trial","volume":"42","author":"Nastri","year":"2013","journal-title":"Ultrasound Obstet Gynecol"},{"key":"B5","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"687","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jogoh.2017.09.003","article-title":"Comparison of pregnancy rates between patients with and without local endometrial scratching before intrauterine insemination","volume":"46","author":"Senocak","year":"2017","journal-title":"J Gynecol Obstet Hum Reprod"},{"key":"B6","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"47","DOI":"10.1186\/s12905-017-0378-y","article-title":"Endometrial scratching in women with implantation failure after a first IVF\/ICSI cycle; does it lead to a higher live birth rate? 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