I've just been reading about the triplets born to a woman of 66 in Northern India. Her doctor seems rather proud to announce that she is the oldest woman in the world to give birth to triplets. This was apparently her third attempt at IVF and she had three embryos transferred as the two embryos put back in the earlier cycles had failed to implant. The three babies are now in intensive care as they are very underweight.
The treatment was carried out at the same clinic in Haryana where a woman of 70 who became the world's oldest mother was treated. The clinic seems to specialise in treating pensioners and the website is quite bizarre, featuring pictures of elderly couples next to tiny babies. In India, the average age expectancy for a woman is 66 and it's even younger for a man, so the clinic are helping to create babies whose parents are highly unlikely to live past their first few years. And surely carrying three babies and then having a Caesarean at 66 is hardly going to increase your life expectancy...
It's stories like these that have to make you glad that we have such a highly regulated system in the UK, and that our fertility doctors consider what is right for potential parents and children when they are making decisions about treatment, rather than the desire to break new ground in totally unethical territory.
Tuesday, 15 June 2010
The French Study...
You may have heard about "The French Study" over the last few days... It has been quite widely reported in the media as it shows that there is a small risk of malformation for children born after IVF. The study looked at more than 15,000 IVF children's health records and found that 4.24% had some kind of congenital malformation. It sounds incredibly alarming, and is enough to worry anyone considering IVF.
As usual with these stories, there is a however... First, this needs to be put into perspective, as in the general population who have not had IVF, there is a risk of up to 3% of congenital malformation so the increased risk is very small. Second, although you may not have been aware of this, previous studies had put the figure of congenital malformation after IVF as high as 11%, so this is actually a lot better than many scientists had expected. The French researchers believe their figure is more likely to be correct because this was such a large study.
This is certainly an issue that needs further investigation, and makes the case for more long-term follow-up studies of children born after assisted conception. At the same time, it is important to understand that this increased risk is very small. If you do have worries about it, you should talk to the team at your clinic. See more here
As usual with these stories, there is a however... First, this needs to be put into perspective, as in the general population who have not had IVF, there is a risk of up to 3% of congenital malformation so the increased risk is very small. Second, although you may not have been aware of this, previous studies had put the figure of congenital malformation after IVF as high as 11%, so this is actually a lot better than many scientists had expected. The French researchers believe their figure is more likely to be correct because this was such a large study.
This is certainly an issue that needs further investigation, and makes the case for more long-term follow-up studies of children born after assisted conception. At the same time, it is important to understand that this increased risk is very small. If you do have worries about it, you should talk to the team at your clinic. See more here
Thursday, 10 June 2010
Maybe being calm doesn't make you more fertile...
It seems to go against everything we've heard in the past, but new research apparently shows that neurotic women are more fertile and have more babies than their calmer laid-back sisters!
The research, which was carried out in Senegal, seems to contradict previous studies in Western countries which had suggested women who were had neurotic personality traits were likely to have fewer children. It is certainly interesting, especially as we tend to assume here nowadays that being chilled and relaxed is key to improving your fertility.
You can read an article on the subject at www.dailymail.co.uk
The research, which was carried out in Senegal, seems to contradict previous studies in Western countries which had suggested women who were had neurotic personality traits were likely to have fewer children. It is certainly interesting, especially as we tend to assume here nowadays that being chilled and relaxed is key to improving your fertility.
You can read an article on the subject at www.dailymail.co.uk
Wednesday, 9 June 2010
Is it too easy to buy eggs and sperm in the US?
I've just been reading an interesting piece in the New York Times which compares the complicated process people face when adopting a child with the ease with which donor sperm and eggs can be purchased in the States. During adoption, the interests of the child are always paramount, as they should be, but with donor conception, the interests of the prospective parents may seem to lead the way.
Columnist Ross Douthat discusses a study of donor conceived adults which showed that many of them felt some unease about their conception, often because money had changed hands. Unlike the UK, donation in the States is not only paid but can also be anonymous. Although getting rid of anonymity in the UK was initially seen to have reduced the donor pool and created longer waits for donor treatment, it is likely that in the long run it will reduce the potential problems of donor conception making it possible to trace a donor parent.
You can read the article at www.nytimes.com
Columnist Ross Douthat discusses a study of donor conceived adults which showed that many of them felt some unease about their conception, often because money had changed hands. Unlike the UK, donation in the States is not only paid but can also be anonymous. Although getting rid of anonymity in the UK was initially seen to have reduced the donor pool and created longer waits for donor treatment, it is likely that in the long run it will reduce the potential problems of donor conception making it possible to trace a donor parent.
You can read the article at www.nytimes.com
Tuesday, 8 June 2010
Considering fertility treatment?
If you're considering fertility treatment, you may be interested in a new publication from the HFEA, called Getting started: Your guide to fertility treatment. It's for those who are at the beginning of their fertility treatment journey and explains what the different treatments are, what to think about before you start, what to expect at a clinic, funding options, potential risks and where to get support.
You can order your free copy at www.hfea.gov.uk/order or pick up a leaflet with a pre-paid order form at a GP surgery.
Each section of the new guide directs people to the HFEA website for more detailed information and the latest data on licensed clinics.
You may also be interested in my books The Complete Guide to IVF of The Complete Guide to Female Fertility , which is also ideal for anyone at the start of their journey and for any woman who is wondering how late she can leave it to have a baby.
You can order your free copy at www.hfea.gov.uk/order or pick up a leaflet with a pre-paid order form at a GP surgery.
Each section of the new guide directs people to the HFEA website for more detailed information and the latest data on licensed clinics.
You may also be interested in my books The Complete Guide to IVF of The Complete Guide to Female Fertility , which is also ideal for anyone at the start of their journey and for any woman who is wondering how late she can leave it to have a baby.
Reduced fees for single embryo transfer patients
Did you know that the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) will no longer charge clinics for patients who have frozen embryo transfers after putting back just one embryo in a fresh cycle?
At the moment, fertility clinics pay the HFEA a fee for each cycle they carry out, and the clinics pass this charge directly on to their patients. From October onwards, the fee will be dropped if a patient who had an unsuccessful single embryo transfer goes on to have additional frozen embryo transfers. The idea is that this will help reduce any additional financial burden from the decision to have just one embryo put back at a time.
Single embryo transfer does make sense for younger women who have good quality embryos as it means you are more likely to have a single, healthy baby. However, in the current economic climate many people do worry that it may end up costing them more to get pregnant this way. The HFEA hopes the decision will show the authority's commitment to helping patients who choose the safe and sensible option.
You can see more here
At the moment, fertility clinics pay the HFEA a fee for each cycle they carry out, and the clinics pass this charge directly on to their patients. From October onwards, the fee will be dropped if a patient who had an unsuccessful single embryo transfer goes on to have additional frozen embryo transfers. The idea is that this will help reduce any additional financial burden from the decision to have just one embryo put back at a time.
Single embryo transfer does make sense for younger women who have good quality embryos as it means you are more likely to have a single, healthy baby. However, in the current economic climate many people do worry that it may end up costing them more to get pregnant this way. The HFEA hopes the decision will show the authority's commitment to helping patients who choose the safe and sensible option.
You can see more here
Monday, 7 June 2010
Abortion after IVF
So, "dozens" of young women are apparently having abortions after getting pregnant by IVF because they have "changed their minds". The report that eighty women who'd had IVF went on to have abortions was said to show that infertile couples were treating babies as "commodities" and it brought out the anti-IVF brigade in force. It's such a terrible shame that something affecting a tiny number of the couples who have IVF every year has been allowed to taint the arguments about whether fertility treatment should be funded by the NHS.
The reality is that the number of women who went on to have abortions after IVF is less than one per cent of the total number of IVF pregnancies. The fact that one woman had told a newspaper reporter that she had been pushed into IVF by her partner, and changed her mind once she got pregnant has been assumed to apply to the other 79 women who didn't continue with their pregnancies. We have no idea what motivated them, but there is no evidence that it wasn't problems with the baby's or their own health, a relationship breakdown or even the death of a partner.
IVF is not something that anyone undertakes lightly - it involves huge emotional and usually financial commitment and is often a pretty traumatic process. The vast majority of those going through treatment would do anything they could to have a child, and using the example of one woman in order to make assumptions and draw conclusions about the three and a half million people having difficulty conceiving is both wrong and unfair.
The reality is that the number of women who went on to have abortions after IVF is less than one per cent of the total number of IVF pregnancies. The fact that one woman had told a newspaper reporter that she had been pushed into IVF by her partner, and changed her mind once she got pregnant has been assumed to apply to the other 79 women who didn't continue with their pregnancies. We have no idea what motivated them, but there is no evidence that it wasn't problems with the baby's or their own health, a relationship breakdown or even the death of a partner.
IVF is not something that anyone undertakes lightly - it involves huge emotional and usually financial commitment and is often a pretty traumatic process. The vast majority of those going through treatment would do anything they could to have a child, and using the example of one woman in order to make assumptions and draw conclusions about the three and a half million people having difficulty conceiving is both wrong and unfair.
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