Congenital defects in assisted reproductive technology pregnancies

The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence and kind of congenital malformations in assisted reproductive technology (ART) pregnancies.

This study included pregnancies conceived by in-vitro fertilization (IVF) or intra cytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), evaluated in a referral center for prenatal diagnosis between January 2008 and December 2009. The control group included all the pregnancies examined in the same centre during in the same period of time. A computerized database was used to retrospectively identify the two study groups.

The study evaluated 225 IVF or ICSI pregnancies (88 IVF and 137 ICSI). A congenital malformation was diagnosed in 13 pregnancies and the malformation rate was 5.8%. The number of malformed fetuses was similar in the ICSI (5.8%) or the IVF (5.7%) pregnancies. The anatomic districts more frequently involved by malformations were the encephalic one (38.5%) and the limbs (23.1%). In the control group, represented by 5,884 pregnancies, the malformation rate was 2.7%; encephalic (22.2%), urogenital (18.4%), cardiac (13.9%)

In our experience on congenital defects in ART pregnancies, the encephalic district and the limbs are more frequently involved by fetal malformation. No significant difference was observed in the malformation prevalence between the IVF and the ICSI pregnancies.