LAUSR

BACKGROUND Phthalate exposure was reported to induce defects in ovarian function, and further influence embryo development and pregnancy outcomes. However, the data about the associations of phthalates with intermediate and pregnancy outcomes of in vitro fertilization (IVF) cycles are scarce in the Chinese population. METHODS A total of 663 women receiving IVF/intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) treatments in our center were enrolled in this analysis. They provided one urine sample on the day of oocyte retrieval. We measured urinary concentrations of eight phthalate metabolites. Generalized linear models were used to analyze the associations of urinary phthalate metabolites with ovarian response, fertilization, early embryo development, and pregnancy outcomes. RESULTS Among all the phthalate metabolites, mono-n-butyl phthalate (MBP) had the highest urinary concentration with a median level of 101.51 μg/g creatinine (Cr). MBP concentration was inversely associated with normal fertilization odds (overall P-trend < 0.01). There was a significant correlation of monoethyl phthalate (MEP) with decreased odds of normal fertilization in medium-concentration group compared to low-concentration group (overall P-trend = 0.02). No significant associations of metabolite concentrations with the odds of good-quality embryos on day 3 or blastocyst formation were found. Monomethyl phthalate (MMP) and MEP in medium-concentration group reduced 22.4% (95% CI: 0.64-0.94, overall P-trend = 0.04) and 21.9% (95% CI: 0.64-0.95, overall P-trend = 0.05) of the odds to gain good-quality blastocyst compared to low-concentration group. The eight phthalate metabolites were not correlated to clinical pregnancy rate, live birth rate, or early miscarriage rate. There was no significant association of di (2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) metabolites observed with any clinical outcomes in the total population. After excluding male infertility, mono (2-ethyl-5-hydroxyhexyl) phthalate (MEHHP) in medium-concentration group turned to be associated with a higher number of retrieved oocytes (overall P-trend = 0.04), whereas mono (2-ethyl-5-oxohexyl) phthalate (MEOHP) in medium-concentration group was associated with a lower odds of normal fertilization compared to low-concentration group (overall P-trend = 0.02). CONCLUSIONS Urinary MBP concentration was much higher compared to other phthalate metabolites in this cohort of Chinese IVF/ICSI women, and also higher than it was reported by studies in other countries. MBP showed adverse impacts on fertilization. MMP and MEP could affect blastocyst quality, but not embryo quality on day 3. DEHP metabolites didn't show consistent reproductive toxicities as demonstrated in previous studies.