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Eight-cell stage embryos
Scientists Improve Ability to Predict Embryo Quality
Better knowledge of which test-tube embryos are more likely to develop into healthy babies could lead to fewer multiple births, and safer fertility treatments.
30-Second Summary
In fertility treatments like in vitro fertilization (IVF), doctors have no way to tell if a “test tube” embryo will implant into a woman’s uterus and become a baby.
To increase chances of pregnancy, some couples allow the transfer of more than one embryo into a woman’s uterus. The result is often a “multiple pregnancy,” from which more than one baby is born.
Assisted reproduction pushed the incidence of twins up 70 percent from 1980 to 2005. The rate of triplet births jumped more than 400 percent in the 1980s and 1990s.
These rates have begun to level off, however, because medical officials are encouraging steps to reduce these numbers. Multiples pregnancies can be very dangerous to both the mother and the babies, and the chance of premature births is high.
Australian researchers recently studied 48 women in Greece who were undergoing IVF, taking between 8 and 20 cells from their embryos a few days after fertilization.
There were 37 babies born from the IVF treatments. The scientists matched “DNA fingerprints” from the embryos to the babies born, and noticed genes that may help predict the chances of an embryo developing into a baby.
“The real measure of the success of an IVF program is the singleton delivery rate, not just the delivery rate,” concludes Dr. Robert Sillman, a medical director at a fertility clinic.
To increase chances of pregnancy, some couples allow the transfer of more than one embryo into a woman’s uterus. The result is often a “multiple pregnancy,” from which more than one baby is born.
Assisted reproduction pushed the incidence of twins up 70 percent from 1980 to 2005. The rate of triplet births jumped more than 400 percent in the 1980s and 1990s.
These rates have begun to level off, however, because medical officials are encouraging steps to reduce these numbers. Multiples pregnancies can be very dangerous to both the mother and the babies, and the chance of premature births is high.
Australian researchers recently studied 48 women in Greece who were undergoing IVF, taking between 8 and 20 cells from their embryos a few days after fertilization.
There were 37 babies born from the IVF treatments. The scientists matched “DNA fingerprints” from the embryos to the babies born, and noticed genes that may help predict the chances of an embryo developing into a baby.
“The real measure of the success of an IVF program is the singleton delivery rate, not just the delivery rate,” concludes Dr. Robert Sillman, a medical director at a fertility clinic.
Headline Link: Identifying embryos
Studying embryos before implanting them into a woman’s uterus could have substantial benefits. Boosting “predictive value by just 20 percent” in favor of creating a successful pregnancy may encourage couples to accept just one embryo from a fertility treatment, says researcher Gayle Jones.
Source: Yahoo News
Background: Sextuplets in Arizona and Minnesota
In 2007, two sets of sextuplets were born hours apart in Minnesota and Arizona. Both sets of parents used fertility treatments. Such a high number of births is rare, but at the time, a doctor said, “It is something that we’re going to be dealing with more and more,” if doctors don’t learn how to lower the chances of having quadruplets or greater. The chance of naturally conceiving sextuplets is one in 4.7 billion.
Source: ABC News
Fertility experts said the sextuplet births illustrated just how dangerous multiples pregnancies can be. The Arizona mother experienced heart failure after delivering her babies. In Minnesota, the babies were delivered at just 22 weeks gestation; three died within a few days.
Source: MSNBC
Related Topics: Multiple births, pre-implantation genetic diagnosis
Multiples birth rates
Whether through assisted reproduction or a family history of multiple pregnancies (twins or greater), the number of parents raising multiples has risen greatly over the years. In fact, some families have “multiple multiples,” according to the Chicago Daily Herald.
Source: Chicago Daily Herald
Pre-implantation genetic diagnosis
Pre-implantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) is being used by parents to choose the sex of their child. Not everyone approves. PGD was initially created as a way to distinguish between healthy embryos and those predisposed to genetic diseases during in vitro fertilization.
Source: findingDulcinea
The majority of babies born with Down syndrome are born to women under 35, but that may change as doctors are now offering screening tests to pregnant women in this age group, igniting debate over ethical obligations.
Source: findingDulcinea
Reference: Fertility issues
FindingDulcinea offers a Web Guide to Fertility Issues that includes a section specific to types of fertility treatments.
Source: findingDulcinea
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