Objective sleep duration and timing predicts completion of in vitro fertilization cycle

Purpose To examine associations between objectively measured sleep duration and sleep timing with odds of completion of an in vitro fertilization (IVF) cycle. Methods This prospective cohort study enrolled 48 women undergoing IVF at a large tertiary medical center between 2015 and 2017. Sleep was assessed by wrist-worn actigraphy, 1 – 2 weeks prior to initiation of the IVF cycle. Reproductive and IVF cycle data and demographic and health information were obtained from medical charts. Sleep duration, midpoint, and bedtime were examined in relation to IVF cycle completion using logistic regression models, adjusted for age and anti-Müllerian hormone levels. A sub-analysis excluded women who worked non-day shifts to control for circadian misalignment. Results The median age of all participants was 33 years, with 29% of women >35 years. Ten women had an IVF cycle cancelation prior to embryo transfer. These women had shorter sleep duration, more nocturnal awakenings, lower sleep efficiency, and later sleep timing relative to those who completed their cycle. Longer sleep duration was associated with lower odds of uncompleted IVF cycle (OR = 0.88; 95%CI 0.78, 1.00, per 20-min increment of increased sleep duration). Women with later sleep midpoint and later bedtime had higher odds of uncompleted cycle relative to those with earlier midpoint and earlier bedtime; OR = 1.24; 95%CI 1.09, 1.40 and OR = 1.33; 95%CI 1.17, 1.53 respectively, for 20-min increments. These results were independent of age, anti-Müllerian hormone levels, or sleep duration, and remained significant after exclusion of shift-working women. Conclusions Shorter sleep duration and later sleep timing increase the odds of uncompleted cycles prior to embryo transfer.