Bed rest after embryo transfers is a subject that patients still ask about, and one that has been clinically advised without a significant amount of clear clinical evidence.
Research has previously suggested that bed rest following an embryo transfer may be detrimental to the IVF cycle; however, more research is needed to provide patients with more substantial evidence.
Scientists in Osaka, Japan investigated whether bed rest after an embryo transfer is beneficial to the patient and if it affected the clinical pregnancy rates.
They found that routine bed rest after an embryo transfer appeared to have detrimental effect to the clinical outcomes such as clinical pregnancy, embryo implantation rate and miscarriage rate. There was a higher clinical pregnancy rate, implantation rate and a lower miscarriage rate for patients who did not have bed rest after an embryo transfer.
The trends were observed regardless of the stage of development of the embryo and irrespective of uterine positioning.
