Anti-Mullerian Hormone and Other Reproductive Hormone Characteristics in Primary and Secondary Infertility

Abstract

Introduction: Infertility is a global health issue; its prevalence is estimated to be approximately 8 - 15% among couples.  In Nigeria and Africa in general, secondary infertility is diagnosed more commonly than primary infertility. There are several identifiable causes of female infertility in the continent. Aim: The study aimed to compare the serum Anti-mullerian (AMH) levels and other reproductive hormones such as follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), luteinizing hormone (LH), prolactin (PRL), progesterone (PROG) and estradiol (E2) in women with primary and secondary infertility. Methodology: This study involved sixty-five (65) infertile and sixty-five fertile women between the ages of 21 – 45 years as the test and control groups, respectively. It was a hospital-based case-control study which was carried out at the Irrua Specialist Teaching Hospital (ISTH) from 2021-2022. Routine sex hormones and AMH in both groups were assayed. The mean, SD, and correlation test were studied between the variables, and the test of significance of variables between the two groups was also analysed using the Statistical Package of Social Sciences (SPSS). Results: There was no significant difference in mean BMI of infertile women (25.01±2.3) and fertile women (25.06±2.3) (p=0.905). At 13.49±1.2 and 14.09±1.0; p=0.003, the average age of menarche was significantly higher in the infertile group compared to the fertile group, respectively. The menstrual cycle pattern was comparable between the two groups, with 54(83.1%) and 57(87.7%) fertile and infertile women having cycles between 28-30 days, respectively. Participants with primary infertility compared to participants with secondary infertility had significantly higher mean AMH (2.99±3.6 vs 1.67±2.5; p=0.002) and significantly lower mean Estradiol (58.23±19.1 vs 79.64±32.8; p=0.009), but not significant for Prolactin (10.11±6.3 vs 13.64±9.5). Conclusion: It can be seen that AMH could be an important identifier in the diagnosis of primary and secondary infertility using the other female reproductive hormone profile performance.