Certain types of In Vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment can increase the risks of autism and intellectual disability in children, new research reveals.
A joint study conducted by researchers from U.K., Sweden and U.S. found an IVF treatment specifically meant to address male infertility, known as intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), as the main culprit behind this occurrence.
ICSI is one of the artificial methods known as Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) adopted by people who experience difficulties in conceiving naturally. It is the process of injecting a single sperm directly into an egg.
The study published in JAMA looked at nearly 2.5 million children born in Sweden between 1982 and 2007. Of the total participants, 30,959 were IVF babies, nearly 7000 had autism and more than 15,800 had an IQ below 70 (taken as an intellectual disability).
The autism and the intellectual disability groups included a significant number of IVF babies (103 and 180, respectively).
At the end of the study, babies born via ICSI treatments, using either fresh or frozen embryos, were found to be at 51 percent greater risk of intellectual disability or low IQ. The risks were higher when some other factors like multiple births and preterm birth came together with the ICSI treatment.
Researchers also found using surgically extracted sperm increasing the risk of autism in children. The association was found only in singleton births and not for multiple births.
They couldn't find the standard IVF treatment - process of manually combining an egg and sperm in a laboratory dish- associated with any increased risks of autism in children compared to babies conceived naturally. However, it was found playing a negative impact on children's IQ (18 percent increased risks).
"Our study shows that treatments developed to manage male infertility are associated with an increased risk for developmental disorders in the offspring," Dr Avi Reichenberg, who led the study, said in a news release. "Whilst intellectual disability or autism remain a rare outcome for IVF, being aware of the increased risk associated with specific types of IVF means offspring at risk can be identified and potentially monitored for developmental disorders, ensuring they receive early detection and appropriate support and care."
The results come at a time when infertility affects one in six couple across the globe and ICSI is widely adopted to solve two-thirds of the cases.
