Polar body diagnosis of common aneuploidies by FISH

Purpose: The purpose of this work was to investigate the reliability and accuracy of polar body analysis for preimplantation diagnosis of common aneuploidies in IVF patients of advanced maternal age. Design: We have previously introduced polar body analysis as an approach for nondestractive evaluation of the genotype of human oocytes. The method has recently been applied in a clinical trial involving 45 infertile patients, demonstrating the feasibility of preconception diagnosis of common aneuploidies by fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH). The present paper describes the experience of polar body diagnosis in 135 IVF patients (161 cycles) of advanced maternal age. Results: FISH results of the first and/or second polar bodies were available in 648 (72.4%) of 895 biopsied oocytes subjected to FISH analysis. Of 648 oocytes with FISH results, 208 demonstrated chromosomal abnormalities. Of 440 oocytes predicted to be free from monosomy or trisomy of chromosomes X, 18, and/or 13/21, 314 were normally fertilized, cleaved, and transferred in 122 treatment cycles, resulting in 6 healthy deliveries and 12 ongoing pregnancies following confirmation of the polar body diagnosis by CVS or amniocentesis. Conclusion: The method may be useful for detection of oocytes with common chromosomal trisomies in IVF patients of advanced maternal age.Presented at the 5th Annual Meeting of the International Working Group on Preimplantation Genetics, Hamburg, Germany, June 28, 1995.