IVF Embryo Screening: Pregnancy Boost?
IVF Embryo Screening: Pregnancy Boost?
July 5, 2007 -- Screening the embryos of an older woman undergoing in vitro fertilization (IVF) for genetic defects -- a procedure known as preimplantation genetic screening -- does not boost her chances of pregnancy and appears to worsen her chances, Dutch researchers say.
But soon after the study was published in the July 5 issue of The New England Journal of Medicine, it was criticized by some reproductive technology experts, who say the researchers' scientific techniques weren't up to standards.
Preimplantation embryo screening is offered routinely to "older" women ages 35 and up at some IVF centers. In the screening technique, which costs about $3,000 to $5,000, a single cell is aspirated from each embryo to check for chromosomal abnormalities. The embryo isn't transferred if abnormalities are present. The screening technique evolved as a logical extension of preimplantation genetic diagnosis, offered to couples with a known genetic defect.
But the new Dutch study shows that pregnancy rates were lower in the women who got the test. While 25% of those who got the test got pregnant, 37% of those who didn't get it became pregnant.
"Preimplantation genetic screening is an expensive technique that is very frequently offered to women of advanced maternal age under the statement that it will increase pregnancy rates," says researcher Sebastiaan Mastenbroek, MSc, a PhD student at the Center For Reproductive Medicine at the Academic Medical Center in Amsterdam. Based on the new study results, he says, "PGS is not the best option for these women. A regular IVF treatment without PGS provides them with a higher chance of pregnancy."
In the study, Mastenbroek and colleagues evaluated 408 women undergoing IVF at several Dutch centers from May 2003 through November 2005. They assigned 206 to the genetic screening group and 202 to a group that not get the screening.
Besides a lower pregnancy rate, those who got the embryo screening also had a lower live-birth rate --24% vs. 35%, the researchers found.
Drawing conclusions from the Dutch study would be premature, critics say. They found fault with the research for a number of reasons.
But soon after the study was published in the July 5 issue of The New England Journal of Medicine, it was criticized by some reproductive technology experts, who say the researchers' scientific techniques weren't up to standards.
Preimplantation embryo screening is offered routinely to "older" women ages 35 and up at some IVF centers. In the screening technique, which costs about $3,000 to $5,000, a single cell is aspirated from each embryo to check for chromosomal abnormalities. The embryo isn't transferred if abnormalities are present. The screening technique evolved as a logical extension of preimplantation genetic diagnosis, offered to couples with a known genetic defect.
But the new Dutch study shows that pregnancy rates were lower in the women who got the test. While 25% of those who got the test got pregnant, 37% of those who didn't get it became pregnant.
"Preimplantation genetic screening is an expensive technique that is very frequently offered to women of advanced maternal age under the statement that it will increase pregnancy rates," says researcher Sebastiaan Mastenbroek, MSc, a PhD student at the Center For Reproductive Medicine at the Academic Medical Center in Amsterdam. Based on the new study results, he says, "PGS is not the best option for these women. A regular IVF treatment without PGS provides them with a higher chance of pregnancy."
Study Details
In the study, Mastenbroek and colleagues evaluated 408 women undergoing IVF at several Dutch centers from May 2003 through November 2005. They assigned 206 to the genetic screening group and 202 to a group that not get the screening.
Besides a lower pregnancy rate, those who got the embryo screening also had a lower live-birth rate --24% vs. 35%, the researchers found.
Criticism of the Study
Drawing conclusions from the Dutch study would be premature, critics say. They found fault with the research for a number of reasons.