Evaluation of the Alife Hera System as an Adjunctive Tool for the Prioritization of Embryos Deemed Suitable for Transfer (LOTUS)

June 11, 2026 updated by: Alife Health

Evaluation of the Alife Hera System as an Adjunctive Tool for the Prioritization of Embryos Deemed Suitable for Transfer: A Randomized Controlled Study

To evaluate the clinical pregnancy rate (pregnancy defined as fetal heartbeat at 6-8 weeks) with the adjunctive use of the Hera System (Hera System used with traditional morphological grading) with embryos already deemed suitable for transfer compared to trained embryologists using standard morphology criteria alone.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Completed

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

To evaluate the clinical pregnancy rate (pregnancy defined as fetal heartbeat at 6-8 weeks) with the adjunctive use of the Hera System (Hera System used with traditional morphological grading) with embryos already deemed suitable for transfer compared to trained embryologists using standard morphology criteria alone.

To evaluate the performance and utilization of the Hera System as an adjunctive embryo grading and prioritization tool in an embryology lab setting with trained embryologists.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
444

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.

Study Locations

  • United States
    • California
      • Menlo Park, California, United States, 94025
        • CCRM
      • San Ramon, California, United States, 94583
        • Reproductive Science Center
    • Florida
      • Margate, Florida, United States, 33063
        • IVF Florida Reproductive Associates
      • Winter Park, Florida, United States, 32789
        • Center for Reproductive Medicine
    • Texas
      • Austin, Texas, United States, 78731
        • Ovation Fertility
      • San Antonio, Texas, United States, 78258
        • Aspire Fertility
    • Utah
      • Sandy City, Utah, United States, 84092
        • Reproductive Care Center

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

17 years to 39 years (Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  1. >21 and < 43 years of age
  2. Women undergoing in vitro fertilization treatment using their own eggs
  3. At least 8 eggs retrieved
  4. Fertilization using only ejaculated sperm including donor sperm (fresh or frozen)
  5. Single embryo transfer (SET)
  6. Willing to comply with study protocol and procedures and be able to speak English
  7. Willing to provide written informed consent

Exclusion Criteria:

  1. Gestational carriers
  2. Use of re-inseminated eggs
  3. Use of donor eggs
  4. History of cancer
  5. Fertilization using surgically removed sperm
  6. Transfer of multiple (more than one) embryos at once
  7. Participants undergoing IVF with intent to bank embryos (i.e. no intention of embryo transfer for at least 6 months following egg retrieval)
  8. Concurrent participation in another clinical study that might interfere with the study results in either study

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
No Intervention: Traditional Morphology
The embryo selection will be based on standard of care traditional morphology only.
Experimental: Device: Hera System
For the Hera, the embryologist will use the consider both the standard morphology grade and the Hera System score on embryos that were already deemed suitable for transfer or freeze based on the standard morphology assessment to determine the most suitable embryo for transfer.
Device: Hera Score
The device uses patient metadata (patient age, day of image capture) and a software algorithm to analyze features of the blastocyst morphology to provide adjunctive information that may predict further development of the embryo to clinical pregnancy after embryo transfer.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Primary Endpoint
Time Frame: up to 8 weeks
The primary study endpoint is clinical pregnancy - defined as a fetal heartbeat at 6-8 weeks.
up to 8 weeks

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Incidence of disagreement
Time Frame: week 1
Incidence of disagreement for the top-ranked embryo between the Hera System and the embryologist.
week 1
User Experience
Time Frame: through study completion at 8 weeks
Assessment of Hera System usability as reported by the embryologist using a user questionnaire.
through study completion at 8 weeks

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Alife Health

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
July 11, 2022

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
September 19, 2024

Study Completion (Actual)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
December 20, 2024

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
July 25, 2022

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
July 29, 2022

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
August 2, 2022

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
June 15, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
June 11, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
June 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • CIP-01

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

Yes

product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.

Yes

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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