Large study suggests no adverse effect of fertility treatment on cardiovascular health of offspring

A large study looking at the effects of fertility treatment has found no robust difference in blood pressure, heart rate, lipids, and glucose measurements between children conceived naturally and those conceived using assisted reproductive technologies (ART).

The study sought to address concerns around whether fertility treatment leads to adverse cardiometabolic health in offspring. The data sample included 8,600 children from Bristol’s Children of the 90s study, which has followed pregnant women and their offspring since 1991.

Since the first birth of a child by in vitro fertilisation (IVF), questions have been raised about the health risks to children conceived this way, however previous studies are limited by small sample size, short follow-up, and unsatisfactory comparison groups.

The study, looked at data from 35,000 European, Singaporean, and Australian offspring. It was large enough to study whether conception by ART affected blood pressure, pulse rate, lipids or glucose from childhood to young adulthood (up to early 20s).

The researchers found that blood pressure, heart rate, and glucose levels were similar in children conceived using ART and their naturally conceived peers. The team also found that those who were conceived by ART had slightly higher cholesterol levels in childhood, which did not persist to adulthood, and some indication of slightly higher blood pressure in adulthood.

Reference:

‘Long-term cardiometabolic health in people born after assisted reproductive technology: a multi-cohort analysis’ by Ahmed Elhakeem et al. in European Heart Journal,doi 10.1093/eurheartj/ehac726