The World Health Organization (WHO) reports that each year more than 20 million babies are born weighing less than 2,500 grams, most of them come to the world in developing countries.
For many years it has been believed that reproductive treatments were related to a low birth weight of the babies born from them, but a recent study that we have carried out at IVI shows how for the first time, since the arrival of in vitro fertilization More than 40 years ago, children born through assisted reproduction presented a weight similar to that of spontaneously conceived children.
“We have worked hard to achieve to reverse the percentage of babies born with low birth weight and to resemble that obtained in spontaneous full-term pregnancies, and today we can affirm that less than 8% of babies conceived in any of the IVI centers in 2019 had low birth weight. Taking into account that the percentage in the case of babies conceived naturally, according to the latest known data in this regard dating from 2017, stands at 7.8%, this is a hopeful figure that allows dismantling some of the stigmas that have marked the field to which we dedicate ourselves. Our objective has been and continues to be to resemble assisted reproduction to pregnancies achieved by natural methods, and figures like these show us that we are on the right track ”, comments the Dr. Antonio Requena, IVI Medical Director.
Prematurity and low birth weight do not always go hand in hand. It is estimated that 3-5% of full-term babies are at the bottom of the height and weight charts, which does not always imply abnormal development.
«In just over 15 years, we have seen a more than triple reduction in the risk of low birth weight in IVF babies. This fact reassures patients, since it is evident that today’s IVF is no longer equivalent to premature twins who can spend weeks in the neonatal unit, but to a healthy baby, born with the same weight as a baby conceived naturally » adds Dr. Requena.
This substantial improvement in the figures of low birth weight in babies who came to the world with our reproductive techniques is linked to extended use of single embryo transfer (SET). This practice is the result of our firm commitment to drastically reduce multiple pregnancies – in fact, In just 10 years, these types of pregnancies have decreased by 75% – thus increasing the chances of full-term pregnancy and the birth of a healthy baby.
“At IVI, 100% of the transfers we make are from a single embryo, and the rate of twins is barely 3%on par with the national rate of naturally conceived twins, which is 2.4%, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC, for its acronym in English), ”says Dr. Requena.
The last 20 years in reproductive medicine have been full of advances, a progress to which is now added this remarkable decrease in the risk of low birth weight, with the positive implications that this has on the safety and success of IVF, as well as the continuous improvement of results and optimization of the experience of patients who trust us their greatest illusion: being parents.
“Babies born with our help, and thanks to SET, have a weight similar to that of babies conceived naturally and pregnancy rates at term similar to those of babies conceived naturally. In short, these figures are evidence that the gap is closing between IVF and natural conception, and it’s very good news for those struggling with infertility«, Concludes the specialist.
