Anyone used DHEA and melatonin to help egg quality after failed IVF cycles ? Is there any side effects?

[Pretty_roses]

Hi all

I am 34 and my AMH is 2.5. I have had 4 ICSI cycles. First cycle we got one embryo so was able to have a fresh embryo transfer. It resulted to no pregnancy.

My hubby and I did another 3 ICSI cycles. We have no eggs fertilise. So we don’t even get to the embryo transfer stage. It has been so hard.

Recent cycle i had 5 follicles and 3 eggs. Sadly they didn’t fertilise as they should have. Two fertilised were abnormal and got discarded. The other was partially fertilised. Survived day 3 and they kept it cultured and it didn’t survive day 5 to do a genetics test.

It’s been a tough. I have been told it is most likely that my egg quality is poor. So it has been suggested I take DHEA 25mg three times a day and 3mg melatonin at night.

I was wondering if anyone has used these and had any side effects ? I have read alot about DHEA and the side effects.

Thanks xx

[DreamingOfTwo79]

Hello Pretty_roses, I took 75mg/day DHEA for three months and 3mg Melatonin at night during the stims phase and the only side effect I noticed after about two months in was increased greasy hair and more skin blemishes after which the consultant suggested I reduce the DHEA dose to 75mg on weekdays and 50g on the weekend and see if that makes a difference. She counselled against blood testing as she found that the body has ways to mask the true testosterone levels and instead she recommended to look out for side effects like I described and reduce the dose. From the Melatonin I personally found that I had sleepless nights even though it is often used to regulate sleep rhythm after jetlag. I would still use both again if we were to go through more rounds of egg collections as I am convinced it increased our egg quality. I see that you used ICSI as fertilisation method, it is worth discussing with your consultant to switch to IMSI or PIMSI for your next round as the sperm quality can also impact fertilisation rates. Wishing you the best of luck! X

[Pretty_roses in reply to DreamingOfTwo79]

Hi DreamingOfTwo79,

Thank you so much for sharing your experience with me.

I may try them. Yes my hubby has high sperm DNA fragmentation they have advised him to do things and take certain things. He needs to do a repeat DNA fragmentation before the next cycle.

We have tried IMSI too. What is PIMSI? Not heard of that.

Wishing you all the luck too xxx

[DreamingOfTwo79 in reply to Pretty_roses]

With PIMSI they add hyaluronan to the dish with the sperm sample and the expectation is that only "healthy" sperm binds to it which allows the embryologist to select the best looking sperm. They would then review the sperm further under a higher magnification microscope (IMSI) before making their final selection for injecting the egg with. Best of luck to you! xx

[Pretty_roses in reply to DreamingOfTwo79]

Thank you so much for explaining this to me.

Much appreciated it.

Best of luck to you too xx

[Nenad in reply to DreamingOfTwo79]

hi there, sorry to jump into this but your experience of DHEA encouraged me to ask you a question: did you experience any weight gain with DHEA? I noticed significant weight gain, especially around my waist, so I stopped using it. Many thanks x

[DreamingOfTwo79 in reply to Nenad]

Hi Nenad, I gained quite a bit of weight since last July when we had our first investigations and two rounds of embryo banking in Oct/Nov, I couldn't honestly say which of the meds/supplements to attribute the weight gain to. I tried to eat sensibly and healthily though I do have periods where I fall off the wagon and eat too much chocolate and cake. I am also on Levothyroxine which I feel impacts my ability to shift pounds quickly. Prior to starting IVF I used to be able to balance out the scales fairly easily by cutting out sugar and white flour based foods for a while but I am definitely struggling more since adding this constant and ever changing cocktail of IVF meds and supplements. Also doing a lot less exercise than before IVF (I'm into water based exercise), I know a lot of ladies are undeterred and keep on swimming or doing Aqua Fitness but personally I do not want to take the risk of infection so decided to hold off my usual exercise and do brisk walking or yoga instead with varying success. x

[Nenad in reply to DreamingOfTwo79]

thank you so much for your response. I completely agree and can relate to this. Ever since I started IVF, the drugs have made it increasingly difficult to manage my weight. More recently I hated the effects the DHEA had on my body. All those hormones really mess up with our system. We really do go through so much! Thanks again xx

[K8dferXdder]

hi there, i took dhea only, never managed to start melatonin and side effects are same as others already said - greasy hair etc.

however if you are doing icsi, i guess you have male factor. Have you done deep investigations of your partner and fix his issue? We had varicocele embolisation, took Impryl for men and 25mg of Clomiphene. You better see urologist but one of the top 3, I can give you the names.

[Batonnets in reply to K8dferXdder]

Sorry to jump in, please can you pm me the urologist recommendations? Thanks

[Pretty_roses]

Hi there

That is interesting to know about the similar side effects. Yes we have been doing deep investigation regarding my hubby. He is on proxseed and clomiphene as he had high DNA fragmentation. He needs to repeat a DNA fragmentation to see if medication has worked. Hopefully 🤞🏽 it has.

I would be grateful if you can let me know names. It would be interesting know who are the top 3.

Thanks so much xx

[K8dferXdder in reply to Pretty_roses]

i sent you a private message

[MariannaB]

I used Dhea 75 mg a day and melatonin 3 mg 3 months prior my egg collection. Had no side effects, I don’t know if did made any different to be honest. I had 2 cycles and 5 embryos transferred without the Dhea and just the last one got pregnant unfortunately I miscarried at 9 weeks. My last cycle with Dhea and melatonin had 9 eggs with 2 embryos day 5 and got pregnant from the fresh transfer. Have a very low AMH as well and I am 39 .

[Pretty_roses]

Hi MariannaB,

Thank you for sharing this information. I have found it very useful to know.

It is wonderful news that you are pregnant.

Wishing you all the best.

[JPxx]

So sorry you are going through this. We are in very much the same situation. My AMH is 3. Just had three fail cycles, 2/3 eggs collected with no embryos to transfer. Husband has very high DNA frag.

I have been taking dhea and melatonin for 3 months now. I haven’t seen any increase in eggs unfortunately. But no side effects.

Weight gain, I think I have that purely because I don’t excercise during stims and three months of that has taken it’s tol.

Our urologist, who is amazing, Tet Yap. Recommend we get the sperm surgically removed. Husband is going to have this done for the second time next month. The first time it was removed in 2021, the DNA frag results were perfect. Not an easy opp though and we had a baby girl.

Sorry I haven’t given much confidence for my current rounds but unfortunately we have been told it is a numbers game and if we keep going one will work. Just costing a fortune.

[Pretty_roses]

Hi JPxx,

It is tough. I am so sorry to hear your journey has been tough.

This is my worry taking further supplements like DHEA and melatonin and it does not help. Good to know regarding no side effects though.

I feel the weight gain since I have been on and off on this fertility journey. I do exercise regularly or atleast go for a walk but it’s not shifted. I kept getting upset and telling my hubby it’s not going. 😞 trying to learn to embrace the weight gain and being kinder to myself.

We are with him too. He is brilliant. He has put hubby on clomiphene. He has to do a repeat DNA frag. Fingers cross.

The op sounds tough. Aww that’s lovely to hear you had a baby girl.

They think it maybe my egg quality as they used IMSI and Zymot last cycle. 😞 it’s hard as it is difficult to improve egg quality.

Sadly, i have been told the same too. Numbers game. I agree it cost so much.

Wishing you all the best.

[Watermelon82]

hey sorry to hear you’re struggling with fertilisation using icsi, I’m in a somewhat similar position. Did they use oocyte activation (calcium) in your last rounds at all?

[Pretty_roses in reply to Watermelon82]

Hi Watermelon82,

It is tough. I am sorry you’re in a similar situation too.

No they didn’t. I didn’t know it exist to be honest. Is it worth asking about it ? X

[Watermelon82 in reply to Pretty_roses]

I haven’t had it done personally but we will next round, I would certainly read up on it and chat to your clinic about it. ☺️

[Pretty_roses in reply to Watermelon82]

Thanks so much for making me aware. Much appreciated it.

Best wishes on your journey xx