Pregnancy: Prospective follow-up study of 55 children born after subzonal insemination and intracytoplasmic sperm injection

Abstract

In 163 couples referred for assisted fertilization, pregnancy was established by subzonal insemination (SUZI), intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) or a combination of both techniques. These couples agreed to participate in a prospective study that included a prenatal diagnosis and clinical follow-up of the children. No cytogenetic aberrations were observed in 43 children tested. In 23 pregnancies occurring after SUZI, 15 women gave birth to 21 children. After replacement of combined SUZI and ICSI embryos, 10 pregnancies resulted in 8 deliveries with 10 children. Transfer of ICSI embryos led to 130 pregnancies ending in 20 deliveries with 24 children, with many others still ongoing successfully. In total, 55 children have been examined: 29 boys and 26 girls. One child from a singleton pregnancy presented multiple congenital malformations; one twin child presented a quadriparesis. In this observational study on a limited number of children, the incidence of major malformations was not different from the incidence in the general population.

Fertilization and early embryology: Ongoing pregnancies and birth after intracytoplasmic sperm injection with frozen—thawed epididymal spermatozoa

“…Prenatal diagnosis was proposed, including chorionic villus sampling at 10 weeks or amniocentesis at 16 weeks of gestation. A continued follow-up of any children born was required (Bonduelle et al, 1994).…”

Development to Blastocyst Is Impaired When Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection Is Performed with Abnormal Sperm from Infertile Mice Harboring a Mutation in the Protein Phosphatase 1cγ Gene1

“…However, there is controversy surrounding the safety of ICSI. Some investigators claim that the frequency of birth defects among ICSI babies is indistinguishable from that in the general population [16][17][18][19][20]. Others, however, believe that significant risks of either birth defects or low birth weight are associated to ICSI conceptions [21][22][23].…”

Sperm cryopreservation in adolescents with newly diagnosed cancer

“…The fear that the process of cryopreservation of sperm, its prolonged storage and subsequent thawing may lead to chromosomal or genetic defects currently seems to be unjustified. There are many reports of healthy children born after the use of cryopreserved sperm from cancer patients [9,12,32,33].…”