Clinical and Experimental Reproductive Medicine  2013;40(1):38-41

doi:10.5653/cerm.2013.40.1.38

Ovarian stimulation and liver dysfunction: Is a clinical relationship possible? A case of hepatic failure after repeated cycles of ovarian stimulation.

Emilio GIUGLIANO 1 ; Elisa CAGNAZZO ; Giancarlo PANSINI ; Fortunato VESCE ; Roberto MARCI

Affiliations

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Keywords

Controlled ovarian stimulation; Endothelial dysfunction; HELLP syndrome; Intrauterine insemination; Liver rupture; Ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome

Country

Republic of Korea

Language

English

Abstract

Liver damage induced by ovarian stimulation has been demonstrated in some cases reported in the literature. However, there has never been a fruitful debate on this topic. The present manuscript tried to fill this gap. We reported a case of a 35-year-old nulliparous woman admitted to our obstetric emergency room for severe pre-eclampsia. She had been subjected to four cycles of controlled ovarian stimulation for intrauterine insemination. At 32 weeks of gestation, she developed severe pre-eclampsia, which led to HELLP syndrome complicated by fatal liver failure. The etiological link between ovarian stimulation and HELLP syndrome is intriguing. Further investigations are needed to understand whether repeated ovarian stimulation may represent a risk factor in pre-eclamptic patients.