Cardiovascular risk may be increased in women with unexplained infertility

OBJECTIVE: Growing evidence suggests that increased cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk is associated with female infertility caused by conditions such as polycystic ovarian disease, obesity, thyroid dysfunction, and endometriosis. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether any relationship exists between CVD and unexplained infertility. METHODS: Sixty-five women with unexplained infertility and 65 fertile controls were enrolled in the study. CVD risk markers such as low-density lipoprotein (LDL), high-density lipoprotein (HDL), total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TG), insulin resistance (defined by the homeostasis model assessment ratio), and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) were assessed. RESULTS: TG, TC, LDL, and hs-CRP levels were higher and HDL levels were lower in patients with unexplained infertility than in fertile controls (p<0.05 for all). Positive associations were found between unexplained infertility and TG, TC, LDL, and hs-CRP levels, and a negative correlation was found for HDL (p<0.05 for all). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that TG, HDL, and hs-CRP were independent variables associated with unexplained infertility. CONCLUSION: Our study showed that women with unexplained infertility had an atherogenic lipid profile and elevated hs-CRP levels, suggesting a higher risk of developing CVD in the future. Further studies with larger groups are needed to investigate the nature of this link.