Instituto Bernabeu studies whether there are specific characteristics of the vaginal microbiome in IVF pregnancy

Knowing what factors may be involved in preterm birth is still unknown. Specialists know that it is more common for pregnancies conceived through in vitro fertilisation (IVF) to be delivered earlier than natural pregnancies. It’s under this premise that Instituto Bernabeu and two public hospitals have carried out a study in which 64 pregnant women have participated. The researchers compared the composition of the vaginal microbiome at 12 weeks of gestation in women who underwent IVF and those who conceived naturally. The aim was to establish whether the risk of preterm birth can be related to the composition of the vaginal microbiome.

Instituto Bernabeu scientific director, Dr Belen Lledo, was in charge of presenting this important work and its results at the World of Microbiome (WoM 2022) international congress held in Vienna (Austria) from April 28^th to 30^th.

In their conclusions, the researchers indicate that the analysis of the vaginal microbiome at 12 weeks of pregnancy is different when the pregnancy is natural than when it has been achieved with the help of IVF. These findings lead the scientists to believe that the vaginal microbiome may be linked to the risk of early birth in IVF pregnancies.

Identification of vaginal microbiome associated with IVF pregnancy

B. Lledó, A. Fuentes, F. Lozano, A. Cascales, R. Morales, M. Hortal, A. Palacios-Marques, R. Bermejo, F. Quereda, J. Martínez-Escoriza, R. Bernabeu, A. Bernabeu