The Effectiveness of Cabergoline for the Preventionof Ovarian Hyperstimulation Syndrome

Type 2 receptors for vascular endothelial growth factor are believedto be involved in the pathophysiology of ovarian hyperstimulationsyndrome (ohss). the objective of this study wasto examine the preventive effects of cabergoline on ohss andits complications. the study is a non randomized clinical trialconducted in 2006-2008 on 75 patients, which were at risk ofohss and underwent assisted reproductive techniques. thediagnosis and severity of ohss were determined using standardcriteria. the study included an intervention and a controlgroup. the intervention group comprised of 50 women at riskof ohss, who were treated with cabergoline (1 mg every otherday for 8 days) commencing from the day of ovum pick up. thecontrol group comprised of 25 historical cases, which weresimilar to the case group. the latter group did not receive cabergoline,and their ohss, if occurred, were managed conservativelyafter hospital admission. the rates of ohss, baselinecharacteristics, ovarian stimulation parameters, and pregnancyoccurrence were compared. there was no significant differencebetween baseline characteristics or ovarian stimulation parametersform the two groups. the incidence of ohss in the cabergoline-treated group, was significantly (p=0.01) lower than thatin the control group (12% vs 36%). embryo freezing was significantly(p=0.001) lower in the control group, but cycle cancellationwas significantly (0.03) lower in the cabergolinegroup. the findings of the study indicate that cabergoline reducesthe incidence of ohss, and is not associated with adverseeffects on pregnancy