Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40436023›Full record

ArticleObstetrics & gynecology science2025

Effect of L-carnitine supplementation on fertility outcomes among patients with polycystic ovary syndrome: a systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials.

Ahmed Abu-Zaid, Ghadeer Adel Alghamdi, Alaa Saleh Alharbi, Saeed Baradwan, Saleh A K Saleh, Heba M Adly, Mooza M Alzayed, Mohammed Abuzaid, Raghad Sindi, Mohannad Alsabban and 1 more

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Obstetrics & gynecology science, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Review
  2. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

11 authors.

Ahmed Abu-ZaidDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynecology, College of Medicine, Alfaisal University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Ghadeer Adel AlghamdiDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Care Hospital, Riyadh, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Alaa Saleh AlharbiDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Care Hospital, Riyadh, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Saeed BaradwanDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynecology, King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Saleh A K SalehDepartment of Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, Umm Al-Qura University, Makkah, Saudi Arabia.
Heba M AdlyDepartment of Community Medicine and Pilgrims Healthcare, Faculty of Medicine, Umm Al-Qura University, Makkah, Saudi Arabia.
Mooza M AlzayedCollege of Medicine and Medical Sciences, Arabian Gulf University, Manama, Bahrain.
Mohammed AbuzaidDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Al Birk General Hospital, Al Birk, Saudi Arabia.
Raghad SindiFaculty of Pharmacy, Umm Al-Qura University, Makkah, Saudi Arabia.
Mohannad AlsabbanDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynecology, King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Osama AlomarDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynecology, College of Medicine, Alfaisal University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

This systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) assessed the effect of L-carnitine (LC) supplementation on the fertility outcomes of patients with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). Online databases (Scopus, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, EMBASE, and PubMed) were searched to identify eligible RCTs published until March 2024. A dose-response meta-analysis was performed using a random-effects model. Meta-regression was also performed to investigate the source of heterogeneity based on the LC dose and duration of treatment. The pooled analysis included eight RCTs with 1,046 participants. The LC-treated group had significantly increased chemical and clinical pregnancy rates, ovulation rate, progesterone levels, number of preovulatory follicles >17 mm in diameter, and endometrial thickness compared to the untreated groups. The meta-analysis model indicated that LC supplementation did not change the serum levels of estrogen and testosterone; however, the dose-response meta-analysis indicated that prolonged LC intake significantly increased estrogen levels. LC supplementation has significant effects on fertility outcomes of women with PCOS. Additional large-scale longer RCTs are required to confirm the findings of this study.

Indexed as

FertilityL-carnitineOvulationPolycystic ovary syndrome

Identifiers

PMID40436023
PMCPMC12301557

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.