Babies born through assisted reproductive technology, such as in vitro fertilization (IVF), have a 36% higher risk of developing a major heart defect than children conceived naturally, a new study finds.
However, heart defects are relatively rare. The study authors found them in 1.15% of babies conceived naturally and 1.84% of babies born after assisted reproduction. The risk increased to 2.47% for IVF babies born as multiples.
The research – one of the largest to date – is based on an analysis of more than 7.7 million births in Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden.
“Previous research shows that there are increased risks for babies born with the help of assisted reproductive technology. These include preterm birth and low birth weight,” said lead study author Ulla-Britt Wennerholm from the University of Gothenburg in Sweden. “We wanted to investigate whether the risk of heart defects was higher for babies born after assisted reproduction.”
Wennerholm’s team compared data on babies conceived naturally versus IVF; intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), when a single sperm is injected directly into an egg during IVF; and a frozen embryo.
The researchers then looked at how many babies in each respective group were diagnosed with a serious heart defect in the womb or within the first year of life.
The study authors took into account factors such as the mother’s age at birth and whether she smoked during pregnancy or had a history of diabetes or heart defects.
The researchers hope their findings, published last week in the European Heart Journal, will lead to timely diagnoses of heart defects and life-saving interventions.
“Congenital heart defects can be extremely serious, requiring specialist surgery when babies are very young, so knowing which babies are most at risk can help us diagnose heart defects as early as possible.” possible and ensure proper care and treatment,” said Wennerholm. .
According to the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, 2.5% of all births in the US are the result of successful IVF treatments.
In Denmark, IVF accounts for about 9% of live births, the highest percentage of any country.
Wennerholm notes, “More and more people are becoming pregnant with the help of assisted reproductive technology, so we can expect to see increased cases of congenital heart defects worldwide.”
Wennerholm and her team believe there may be a link between infertile parents and babies born with heart defects, “The fact that the risk of heart defects is similar regardless of the type of assisted reproduction used may indicate that there is a common factor underlying infertility in parents and congenital heart disease in their babies.”
IVF was developed in the 1970s primarily to help women with blocked fallopian tubes.
Since its inception, the technology has been used to help people conceive in other situations, such as women suffering from frequent miscarriages, male infertility and couples looking to use a surrogate.
In IVF, the most common form of assisted reproductive technology, eggs are collected from a woman and combined with sperm in a laboratory to create embryos, which are placed in the uterus.
Patients can test their embryos for genetic abnormalities before transfer.
Genetically healthy embryos have a 60% to 65% success rate. These odds decrease when the woman is older or has uterine conditions that make it difficult for an embryo to implant.
Earlier this year, researchers at the University of California, San Diego, discovered a non-invasive method for a better prediction the quality of embryos created through IVF.
The cost of an IVF cycle can range from $10,000 to $25,000 depending on the various medications, fees, procedures and consultations required for success.
Sometimes it takes several rounds for a baby to be born.
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