Effect of IVF culture medium on health of IVF children

From animal studies it is known that embryo culture leads to growth, behavioural and cardio-metabolic alterations in the offspring. Embryo culture effects on human offspring have long been uninvestigated, until a few years ago when we found that the medium used to culture embryos in an IVF treatment has a significant effect on the incidence of low birth weight (LBW) and on birth weight. As this was the first randomized trial on embryo culture effects in human, nothing is known about health effects at later stages of development. Since a lower birth weight is related to an increased risk for (adult) chronic diseases belonging to metabolic syndrome (Barker theory), our findings raise concern for the IVF progeny. In advance of diseases at adult age, we hypothesize that IVF culture medium affects parameters of metabolic syndrome at childhood stage.

IVF culture medium affects parameters of metabolic syndrome at childhood stage

All children will be investigated at the age of 9 years old.

The children in the IVF group are born after, as an embryo, being cultured in two different commercially available culture media. The two groups will be mutually compared as well as with a control group consisting of children that were conceived naturally.