A Correlation between Antral Follicle Count and Anti-Müllerian Hormone in Healthy Indian Women of Reproductive Age

Abstract

Aim: To determine which of the two parameters between antral follicle count (AFC) and anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) had better correlation with age in healthy females, and also to estimate the strength of correlation between AMH and AFC. Materials and methods: This was a prospective, cross-sectional study comprising 1,181 fertile women of age 20–40 years, who were divided into four age groups, i.e., group I (20–24 years), group II (25–29 years), group III (30–34 years), and group IV (35–40 years). AFC and AMH were measured on third day of menstrual cycle. Pearson correlation and linear regression analysis were used. Statistical Package for Social Sciences, trial version 20, was used for the statistical analysis. A p-value of <0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: The correlation coefficients between AFC and age, AMH and age, AMH and AFC were r = −0.403, r = −0.824 and r = 0.328; p <0.001, respectively. A strong positive correlation (r = 0.986, p <0.001) was noted between AMH and age in group I, while strong negative correlations (p <0.001) were noted in other groups. The correlations between AFC and age (r = −0.177) and AMH and AFC (r = 0.175) were significant (p <0.05) only in group IV. Age accounted for 16.3% variation in AFC and 67.8% variation in AMH. Conclusion: AMH correlated better with age than AFC. There was a weak correlation between AMH and AFC. Clinical significance: The counselling of a woman about her reproductive potential should be based on both AFC and AMH taken together, apart from chronological age, to avoid false sense of security or unnecessary alarm. © The Author(s). 2022.