Recent Research by Shady Grove Fertility Center Proves that elective Single Embryo Transfer is Effective in Reducing Multiple Births.
As fertility experts across the nation bemoan the health risk and expense of multiple births such as the octuplets born last Monday in Southern California, researchers at Shady Grove Fertility Center point to their recently published study proving that a fertility treatment that avoids multiples is equally effective and preferred by patients when cost is not a factor.
The published study, “Elective single embryo transfer: A 6-year progressive implementation of 784 single blastocyst transfers and the influence of payment method on patient choice,” which is available on Fertility and Sterility’s website, proved that elective Single Embryo Transfer (eSET) for In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) can almost eliminate triplet pregnancies and also significantly reduce twin pregnancies without compromising pregnancy rates. It also showed that patients prefer to transfer one embryo when freed from financial pressures to transfer multiple embryos, which can occur when patients have limited or no insurance to pay for treatment. More embryos transferred theoretically improve success rates, but also increase the chance for multiples.
“The long-term costs of health care for multiples — such as the octuplets born last Monday in Southern California — far exceed the expense of single-embryo transfer in vitro fertilization (IVF),” said Robert J. Stillman, M.D., Shady Grove Fertility Center’s medical director and the study’s principal author. “If insurance coverage of fertility treatments were more widespread, more comprehensive, and less restrictive, everyone would win: Patients more likely would choose less risky fertility treatments, insurance companies could avoid outlaying cash for extensive hospital care many multiples require, and society as a whole wouldn’t end up footing the bill.”
Dr. Stillman adds that many patients who undergo IVF at Shady Grove Fertility Center and who are good candidates for eSET request that only a single embryo be transferred back to the their uterus. “If you can transfer one single embryo, without compromising pregnancy rates, then you can even minimize the risk of a twin pregnancy.”
Today, Shady Grove Fertility has one of the lowest triplet pregnancy rates in the nation, having reduced them from 7% in 2001 to 1.5% in 2007. The Center also significantly reduced its twin pregnancies by 7% in the same time period.
Source: Shady Grove Fertility Centers