Skip Navigation


Hum. Reprod. Advance Access originally published online on February 20, 2009
Human Reproduction 2009 24(6):1414-1419; doi:10.1093/humrep/dep004
This Article
Right arrow Full Text
Right arrow Full Text (PDF )
Right arrow All Versions of this Article:
24/6/1414    most recent
dep004v1
Right arrow Submit a response
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me when eLetters are posted
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Related articles in Hum. Reprod.
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to My Personal Archive
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow Search for citing articles in:
ISI Web of Science (1)
Right arrowRequest Permissions
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Habbema, J. D. F.
Right arrow Articles by te Velde, E. R.
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Habbema, J. D. F.
Right arrow Articles by te Velde, E. R.
Social Bookmarking
Add to CiteULike   Add to Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us  
What's this?

© The Author 2009. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oxfordjournals.org

The effect of in vitro fertilization on birth rates in western countries

J. Dik F. Habbema1,7, Marinus J.C. Eijkemans1, Geeta Nargund2, Gijs Beets3, Henri Leridon4,5,6 and Egbert R. te Velde1

1 Department of Public Health, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, PO Box 2040, 3000 CA Rotterdam, The Netherlands 2 Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, St George’s Hospital and Medical School, London, UK 3 Netherlands Interdisciplinary Demographic Institute, PO Box 11650, 2502 AR, The Hague, The Netherlands 4 INED, Paris F-75020, France 5 INSERM, Unit 822, Le Kremlin-Bicêtre F-94276, France 6 Univ Paris-Sud 11, Faculté de Medicine, Le Kremlin-Bicêtre F-94276, France

7 Correspondence address. E-mail: j.d.f.habbema{at}erasmusmc.nl

BACKGROUND: We will assess to what extent in vitro fertilization (IVF) is effective in increasing the number of births overall and whether earlier application of IVF will increase this number.

METHODS: We simulate 100 000 women trying for their first and second child. Natural and IVF pregnancy rates and infertility rates are age-dependent and based on published data. The age at which women start trying for their first child is based on the Netherlands 2002 data. Three cycles of IVF are given during a 12-month period after 1 or 3 years of trying to conceive unsuccessfully. Main outcome measures are live born deliveries and children, both naturally conceived or after IVF, as well as numbers of singletons, twins and triplets, the total fertility rate (TFR) and the number of IVF cycles performed.

RESULTS: Full access to IVF after 3 years increases the TFR by 0.08 children. Applying IVF after 1 year leads to an additional TFR increase of 0.04, with double the number of IVF cycles and twin and triplet children, and a shift from naturally conceived children to IVF children.

CONCLUSIONS: Full access to IVF after 3 years is important. It does increase the TFR. Early availability of IVF would further increase the TFR, but with side-effects and high costs.

Key words: in vitro fertilization/assisted reproduction/total fertility rate/multiple pregnancies/IVF policy

Submitted on October 31, 2008; resubmitted on December 19, 2008; accepted on January 2, 2009.


Add to CiteULike CiteULike   Add to Connotea Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us Del.icio.us    What's this?

Related articles in Hum. Reprod.:

Editor's Choice
André Van Steirteghem
Hum. Reprod. 2009 24: 1241. [Extract] [Full Text]  



This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 Hum Reprod UpdateHome page
E. R. te Velde, H. Leridon, and J. D. F. Habbema
Letter to the Editor of Human Reproduction Update
Hum. Reprod. Update, October 1, 2009; (2009) dmp039v1.
[Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 Hum Reprod UpdateHome page
S. Ziebe and P. Devroey
Reply: Letter to the Editor of Human Reproduction Update
Hum. Reprod. Update, October 1, 2009; (2009) dmp041v1.
[Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 Endocr. Rev.Home page
F. J. Broekmans, M. R. Soules, and B. C. Fauser
Ovarian Aging: Mechanisms and Clinical Consequences
Endocr. Rev., August 1, 2009; 30(5): 465 - 493.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Disclaimer: Please note that abstracts for content published before 1996 were created through digital scanning and may therefore not exactly replicate the text of the original print issues. All efforts have been made to ensure accuracy, but the Publisher will not be held responsible for any remaining inaccuracies. If you require any further clarification, please contact our Customer Services Department.