Global study shows Artificial Intelligence can reduce time to pregnancy for IVF couples by 12%
Reproductive BioMedicine Online (RBMO) journal has published results of an international clinical study showing that Artificial Intelligence (AI) product Life Whisperer can reduce time to pregnancy for IVF couples by 12%, potentially saving costs and heartbreak associated with failed cycles.
The study was conducted with IVF clinics globally, including Ovation Fertility, ORM Fertility, Texas Fertility Centre, and Midwest Fertility Specialists in the USA, IVF-Life in Europe, Alpha IVF & Women's Specialists and Safe Fertility in South East Asia, and Flinders Fertility in Australia.
The AI algorithm, called Life Whisperer Viability (a product by AI healthcare company Presagen), evaluates how likely embryos are to lead to a pregnancy. This allows embryologists to rank and select the best quality embryos for transfer, which is a critical factor for an IVF patient to achieve a successful pregnancy. This study showed that the AI has improved performance over current manual embryo grading approaches using a sophisticated simulating cohort ranking analysis method to determine time to pregnancy.
Presagen’s Chief Medical Science Officer Dr Sonya Diakiw explained “Life Whisperer Viability scores correlate with known features of embryo quality identified by both standard morphological assessment and genetic assessment using PGT-A. However, when comparing the AI with standard morphological grading, the AI performs better in evaluating embryo viability. As a result, the use of the AI could potentially reduce the time to pregnancy for couples undergoing IVF treatment.”
The technology was evaluated on a diverse set of patient embryos from clinics around the world, ensuring that the AI provides consistent and reliable clinical use, regardless of who the IVF patient is or where they are being treated.
Presagen’s Chief Scientist Dr Jonathan Hall explained “The generalisability and scalability of Life Whisperer Viability means millions of people around the world that struggle with fertility now have access to affordable AI-enhanced IVF treatment.”
Life Whisperer Viability is already available for IVF clinics and their patients in over 40 countries globally. It can be used in combination with Life Whisperer Genetics, which assesses if an embryo is likely to be genetically normal (euploid). Together, Life Whisperer Viability and Life Whisperer Genetics provide a comprehensive assessment of embryo quality.
Paper Title
An artificial intelligence model correlated with morphological and genetic features of blastocyst quality demonstrates improved ranking of viable embryos
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1472648322005235
Authors
Sonya M. Diakiw a, Jonathan M. M. Hall a,b,c, Matthew VerMilyea d,e, Adelle Y. X. Lim f, Wiwat Quangkananurug g, Sujin Chanchamroen g, Brandon Bankowski h, Rebecca Stones h, Ashleigh Storr i, Andrew Miller d, Glen Adaniya j, RaeAnne van Tol j, Roberta Hanson k, Jon Aizpurua l, Lydia Giardini l, Adrian Johnston a, Tuc Van Nguyen a, Milad A. Dakka a, Don Perugini a, Michelle Perugini a,m
a Life Whisperer Diagnostics (a subsidiary of Presagen), San Francisco CA 94404, USA, and Adelaide SA 5000, Australia
b Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Nanoscale BioPhotonics, Adelaide SA 5000, Australia
c School of Physical Sciences, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide SA 5000 Australia
d Ovation Fertility, Austin TX 78731, USA
e Texas Fertility Center, Austin TX 78731, USA
f Alpha IVF & Women's Specialists, Petaling Jaya, Selangor 47810, Malaysia
g Safe Fertility, Lumpini, Bangkok 10330, Thailand
h ORM Fertility, Portland OR 97205, USA
i Flinders Fertility, Glenelg SA 5045, Australia
j Midwest Fertility Specialists, Carmel IN 46032, USA
k Ovation Fertility, San Antonio TX 78258, USA
l IVF-Spain, 03540 Alicante, Spain
m Adelaide Medical School, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide SA 5000, Australia
Paper Abstract
Research question
Can better methods be developed to evaluate the performance and characteristics of an artificial intelligence (AI) model for evaluating the likelihood of clinical pregnancy based on analysis of Day 5 blastocyst-stage embryos, such that performance evaluation more closely reflects clinical use in in vitro fertilisation (IVF) procedures, and correlations with known features of embryo quality are identified?
Design
De-identified images were provided retrospectively or collected prospectively by IVF clinics using the AI model in clinical practice. A total of 9,359 images were provided by 18 IVF clinics across 6 countries, from 4,709 women who underwent IVF between 2011 and 2021. Main outcome measures included clinical pregnancy outcome (foetal heartbeat at first ultrasound scan), embryo morphology score, and/or pre-implantation genetic testing for aneuploidy (PGT-A) results.
Results
Results showed a positive linear correlation of AI scores with pregnancy outcomes, and up to a 12.2% reduction in time to pregnancy when comparing the AI model with standard morphological grading methods using a novel simulated cohort ranking method. AI scores were significantly correlated with known morphological features of embryo quality based on the Gardner score, and with previously unknown morphological features associated with embryo ploidy status, including chromosomal abnormalities indicative of severity when considering embryos for transfer during IVF.
Conclusion
The results of this study demonstrated improved methods for evaluating AI for embryo selection, and highlight advantages of the AI model over current grading approaches, strongly supporting the use of the AI model in a clinical setting.
About Presagen and Life Whisperer
Presagen is an AI healthcare company that is changing the way clinics, patients, and medical data from around the world are connected through AI. Its platform, The Social Network for Healthcare, connects clinics and patients globally, and enables collaboration and data sharing to create scalable AI healthcare products that are affordable and accessible for all. The decentralized network democratizes the creation of AI products, promotes collaboration through incentives, and protects data privacy and ownership. With a focus on improving Women’s Health outcomes globally, Presagen’s first product, Life Whisperer, is being used by IVF clinics globally to improve pregnancy outcomes for couples struggling with fertility. With a vision of creating the largest network of clinics, patients, and medical data from around the world, Presagen is driving the future of AI Enhanced Healthcare.