Sleep apnoea in babies born after in vitro fertilization

Babies born after in vitro fertilisation (IVF) are increasing in number, and, although these babies are considered as very precious, no data are available regarding their risk for sudden infant death or apnoea. To evaluate the respiratory maturity of IVF babies, we evaluated the incidence of apnoea during an 8-h polysomnography in 50 consecutively presented IVF babies and in a group of 50 unselected naturally conceived babies. All infants were in good health and matched for term (born > 38 weeks of gestation), birth weight, sex and age at the time of investigation (6-11 weeks post term, median 8.0). There were 24 twins in the IVF and 6 twins in the control group. The incidence of obstructive and isolated central apnoea was comparable in the IVF and control group. However, IVF babies had significantly more periodic breathing episodes than control babies (median 2.30 (range 0-15.30) in IVF, and 1.02 (range 0-11.2) in control babies; P < 0.01). This difference was not related to the higher number of twins in the IVF group. Single IVF babies had significantly more short central apnoeas (5-10 s) than IVF twins (5-10 s) (mean 38.80 +/- 18.63 and 22.33 +/- 13.35; P < 0.001). This difference between single and twin babies was not found in the control group.

IVF babies have more periodic breathing episodes indicating an immature respiratory pattern than normally conceived babies.