| Many people considering ART will
want to use this report to find the "best" clinic. However, comparisons
between clinics must be made with caution. Some clinics may be more
willing than others to accept patients with low chances of success or may
specialize in various ART treatments that attract particular types of patients. |
| These statistics are for 2007. |
| No reported success rate is absolute.
A clinic's success rates will vary year to year even if all determining
factors are the same. As an extreme example, if a clinic reports
only one ART cycle in a given category, the clinic's success rate will
either be 0% or 100%. |
| Some clinics see more than the average
number of patients with difficult infertility problems. Some clinics
are willing to offer ART to most potential users, even those who have a
low probability of success. Others discourage such patients or encourage
them to use donor eggs, a practice that results in higher success rates
among older women. Clinics that accept a higher percentage of women
who previously have had multiple unsuccessful ART cycles will generally
have lower success rates. In contrast, clinics that offer ART procedures
to patients who might have become pregnant with less technologically advanced
treatment will have higher success rates. |
| A related issue is that success
rates shown in this report are presented in terms of cycles, as required
by law, rather than in terms of women. As a result, women who had
more than one ART cycle in 2007 are represented in multiple cycles.
If a woman who underwent several ART cycles at a given clinic either never
had a successful cycle or had a successful cycle only after numerous attempts,
the clinic's success rates would be lowered. |
| Cancellation rates affect a clinic's
success rates. |
| Success rates for unstimulated (or
"natural") cycles are included with those for stimulated cycles. |
| Success rates are calculated per
cycle rather than per patient. Therefore, for patients who undergo
both fresh and frozen cycles, success rates are calculated separately for
each cycle. Clinics that have very good live birth rates with frozen
embryos would have higher ART success rates if these births were included
as successes from the original stimulated cycle. Consumers should
look at both rates when assessing a clinic's success rates. |
| The number of embryos transferred
varies from clinic to clinic. In 2007 the average number of embryos
that a clinic transferred to women younger than age 35 ranged from one
to five. The American Society for Reproductive Medicine and the Society
for Assisted Reproductive Technology discouraged the transfer of a large
number of embryos because it increases the likelihood of multiple gestations.
Multiple gestations, in turn, increase both the probability of premature
birth and its related problems and the need for multifetal pregnancy reduction. |
In addition, success rates can be
affected by many other factors, including:
-
the quality of the eggs
-
the quality of the sperm (including
mobility and ability to penetrate the egg)
-
The skill and competence of the treatment
team
-
the general health of the woman
-
genetic factors.
|
| We encourage consumers considering
ART to contact clinics to discuss their specific medical situation and
their potential for success using ART. Because clinics did not have
the opportunity to provide a narrative to explain their data, such a conversation
could provide additional information to help people decide whether or not
to use ART. |
| Although ART offers important options
for the treatment of infertility, the decision to use ART involves many
factors in addition to success rates. Going through repeated ART
cycles requires substantial commitments of time, effort, money, and emotional
energy. Therefore, consumers should carefully examine all related
financial, psychological, and medical issues before beginning treatment.
They will also want to consider the location of the clinic, the counseling
and support services available, and the rapport that the staff has with
their patients. |
|
Reprinted from SART
|
ARIZONA
CENTER FOR FERTILITY STUDIES
