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Purpose This study aimed to analyze whether a regimen of aromatase inhibitor (AI) could reduce the occurrence of smooth endoplasmic reticulum clusters (sERCs) in oocytes. Method(s) The AI and the clomiphene citrate (CC) regimens were compared, regarding the sERC (+) rates and the serum estradiol and progesterone levels on the date of hCG administration, and the duration of AI, CC, and hMG administration. Result(s) The occurrence of sERCs in oocytes from patients treated with AI was significantly higher than that in oocytes from those treated with CC. Both the serum estradiol and progesterone levels were found to be significantly higher in sERC (+) than in sERC (‐) cycles. With regard to the CC cycles, no significant differences were detected. The duration of AI and hMG administration was longer for sERC (+) than for sERC (‐) cycles. Conclusion As AI did not reduce the occurrence of sERCs, the elevation of estradiol may not be the cause of sERC occurrence but a consequence. Considering the higher levels of progesterone and longer duration of hMG in sERC (+) cycles, the negative effects of premature luteinization, which frequently occur with the AI protocol, should be investigated further.

Purpose This study aimed to analyze whether the presence of refractile bodies (RFs) negatively affects fertilization, embryo development, and/or implantation rates following intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI). Methods This retrospective embryo cohort study involved a total of 272 patients undergoing ICSI treatment of blastocyst cryopreservation. Results In the study, no significant differences were found regarding 2PN formation rates between RF(+) (76.5%) and RF(−) oocytes (77.2%). However, the blastocyst formation rate on Day 5 in RF(+) oocytes was 45.8%, which was significantly lower than that of 52.2% in RF(−) oocytes (aOR 0.74, 95% CI 0.59‐0.93, P = .011). Implantation rates were also significantly lower in RF(+) oocytes (24.2%) as compared to RF(−) oocytes (42.2%) (aOR 0.46, 95% CI 0.26‐0.78, P = .005). Furthermore, the implantation rate of RF(+) oocytes (28.6%), when high‐quality blastocysts were transferred, was significantly lower than that of RF(−) oocytes (46.1%) (aOR 0.50, 95% CI 0.25‐0.96, P = .043). Conclusion Our results suggest that oocytes with the presence of RFs have a lower potential for blastocyst development. Even when they develop into high‐quality blastocysts, the chances of implantation are reduced. Oocytes with the presence of RFs have a lower potential to develop into blastocysts, and even when they develop into high‐quality blastocysts, the chances of implantation are reduced.

We have developed a new method for easy self-assessment of changes in memory recall impairment, which can be used during the very early stages of dementia. An 8-picture recall and a 16-word regression were assessed, respectively, and the index was calculated by adding up the ratio of correct responses to both tests. A total of 85 subjects including 12 MCI, 8 AD, and 65 older persons with normal cognitive function were evaluated, and the correlation with the WMS-R Logical Memory II score was examined. The results showed that there was a statistically significant correlation between the 8-picture recall ( = 0.872, < 0.0001) and the index ( = 0.857, < 0.0001), respectively, with the Logical Memory score. We have named this index as Self Assessment Memory Scale (SAMS), and are now developing a digital tool to enable easy and self-administered evaluation of recall.