Table 1 Baseline characteristics of patients in the ‘L-carnitine’ group versus control group
Variable | L-Carnitine group n = 47 | Placebo group n = 50 | p-value* | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Age (year) | 29.8 (4.0) | 30.4 (4.3) | 0.55 | |
Body mass index (Kg/m2) | 27.4 (5.2) | 27.4 (3.7) | 0.96 | |
FSH (IU/L) | 5.7 (1.9) | 5.7 (1.7) | 0.96 | |
LH (IU/L) | 6.2 (3.9) | 7.2 (3.1) | 0.16 | |
TSH (mIU/L) | 1.5 (0.9) | 1.8 (0.9) | 0.20 | |
AMH (ng/mL) | 7.2 (3.7) | 8.1 (4.4) | 0.26 | |
DHEA (μg/dL) | 202.8 (119.4) | 176.2 (132.2) | 0.35 | |
Free testosterone (nmol /L) | 2.50 (1.6) | 1.8 (1.1) | 0.13 | |
FBS (mg/dL) | 94.1 (12.0) | 92.4 (8.9) | 0.43 | |
Insulin (uIU/mL) | 11.5 (5.3) | 10.1 (5.6) | 0.24 | |
Cholesterol (mg/dL) | 161.1 (38.7) | 162.1 (35.4) | 0.89 | |
Triglyceride (mg/dL) | 141.4 (50.8) | 120.7 (52.1) | 0.06 | |
LDL (mg/dL) | 98.6 (32.6) | 96.3 (27.1) | 0.71 | |
HDL (mg/dL) | 43.5 (14.0) | 46.7 (12.4) | 0.26 | |
Infertility duration (year) | 6.8 (3.9) | 6.5 (4.0) | 0.77 | |
Type of infertility | Primary | 40 (85.1) | 39 (78.0) | 0.36 |
Secondary | 7 (14.9) | 11 (22.0) | ||
Cause of infertility | PCOS | 26 (55.3) | 36 (72.0) | 0.10 |
PCOS& male factor | 21 (44.7) | 14 (28.0) | ||
Phenotypeα | A | 23 (43.9) | 18 (36.0) | 0.16 |
B | 6 (12.8) | 3 (6.0) | ||
C | 12 (25.5) | 20 (40.0) | ||
D | 6 (13.8) | 9 (18.0) | ||
No. of previous IUI | 2.3 (1.4) | 2.0 (0.95) | 0.46 | |