Effects of organochlorine exposure on male reproductive disorders in an electronic waste area of South China.

Several studies suggest that organochlorine exposure can affect male reproductive functions, causing poor semen quality, endocrine disruption, or dysregulation of thyroid hormones. This study uses multiple linear regression (MLR) models to analyze the correlation between male reproductive functions and polychlorinated biphenyl (PCBs) congeners or p,p'-DDE levels in serum, semen, and indoor dust samples. Multiple comparisons were all adjusted using the false discovery rate (FDR). The results revealed that the PCB congener levels in seminal plasma were significantly associated with the quality parameters of human semen (i.e., sperm count, morphology, and motility) and thyroid hormones after adjusting for covariates, e.g., associations of the sperm concentration with levels of CB105 (ß = -0.323, 95% CI: -0.561, -0.085, p = 0.009), CB44 (ß = 0.585, 95% CI: 0.290, 0.880, p < 0.001), and CB66 (ß = -0.435, 95% CI: -0.728, -0.143, p = 0.004) in the seminal plasma were observed. Correlations between serum pollutants levels and the semen quality, reproductive hormones, or thyroid hormones were also observed. Moreover, our results demonstrate that the quantification of PCBs in seminal plasma can better describe male reproductive disorders than that in serum or dust. Organochlorine exposure measured in serum or dust, especially in seminal plasma, was associated with semen quality, as well as reproductive and thyroid hormones, thus suggesting that the impacts of persistent pollutants on male reproductive health require further investigation.

[Value of serum beta-human chorionic gonadotropin on day 9 and 11 after embryo transfer in predicting pregnancy outcomes].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the value of serum beta-human chorionic gonadotropin (ß-HCG) on days 9 (d9) and 11 (d11) after fresh embryo transfer (ET) and frozen-thawed embryo transfer (FET) in predicting the pregnancy outcomes. METHODS: A total of 227 fresh ET and FET cycles performed at the Center of Reproductive Medicine, Qingyuan People's Hospital between Dec, 2012 and Feb, 2014 were analyzed. The data of serum ß-HCG levels on d9 and d11 after fresh ET and FET cycles and the pregnancy outcomes were reviewed, and the ROC curve was constructed to determine the optimal cut-off level of serum ß-HCG level for predicting pregnancy outcomes. RESULTS: According to pregnancy outcomes, the cycles were divided into non-pregnancy group (group A), biochemical pregnancy group (group B), and clinical pregnancy group (group C). Significant differences were found between the mean serum ß-HCG levels measured on d9 and d11 in all the 3 groups (P<0.01). The cycles in group C were further divided into 5 subgroups with single pregnancy (C1), twin pregnancy (C2), early abortion (C3), ectopic pregnancy (C4), or intrauterine pregnancy complicated with ectopic pregnancy group (C5), and all the 5 subgroups showed significant differences in ß-HCG measurements between d9 and d11 (P<0.01). On d9 after ET and FET, the optimal cut-off level of serum ß-HCG was 49.05 IU/L for predicting for clinical pregnancy, and was 105.15 IU/L for predicting twin pregnancy; the two corresponding cut-off levels of serum ß-HCG on d11 was 51.2 IU/L and 241.75 IU/L, respectively. CONCLUSION: The absolute serum ß-HCG level on d9 and d11 after fresh ET and FET allows an accurate diagnosis of pregnancy and helps in the prediction of the pregnancy outcomes.