ERA Test for IVF

A US study on ERA (Endometrial Receptivity Analysis) points yet again to the futility of looking at the endometrial lining receptivity for an explanation of failed IVF treatments.

In this study, patients who did not have ERA testing done and those whose ERA result was "non-receptive" had the same probability of live birth as patients with a "receptive" ERA result. There was a trend toward higher live births among patients who did not have the ERA done.

The issue of uterine lining receptivity and its effect on pregnancy is one of our patients' most frequently asked questions.

Studies implicating uterine receptivity as a significant factor in fertility treatment success are lacking. On the other hand, evidence suggests that the role of uterine lining receptivity as a decisive factor in human conception is limited.

Since women can have ectopic pregnancies (tubal, ovarian, cervical, abdominal), embryos seem to be able to implant in environments that would be considered hostile

Contemporary data suggest that a pregnancy outcome is determined at the moment of the creation of an embryo (the moment of fertilization) and that the subsequent pregnancy events (embryo hatching, implantation, and further fetal development) are merely playing out of this predetermined outcome.

In conclusion. embryo quality rather than uterine receptivity is the most significant factor influencing the reproductive treatment outcome.