Profiling assisted reproductive technology: outcomes and quality of infertility management

Abstract

Objective: To critically appraise the content of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM)/Society for Reproductive Technology (SART) Registry.

Design: English-language literature review.

Patient(s): Women undergoing treatment with assisted reproductive technology (ART).

Intervention(s): Current ART treatments, including IVF, GIFT, zygote intrafollopian transfer (ZIFT), oocyte micromanipulation, and cryopreserved embryo transfers.

Main outcome measure(s): Compliance with clinical practice guidelines, and casemix-adjusted rates of live delivery, clinical pregnancy, ectopic pregnancy, miscarriage, birth defects, implantation, fertilization, and retrieval.

Result(s): Outcomes should be adjusted for variation in patient characteristics known to affect prognosis, including maternal age, the duration of infertility, the presumed cause(s) of infertility, the patient's prior history of treatment for infertility, and diethylstilbestrol exposure. Outcome rates should be reported using the patient as the denominator, as well as cycle, retrieval, and transfer. The statistical significance of observed differences in events rates should be indicated. Because widely accepted clinical practice guidelines related to performance of ART procedures are not available, compliance with practice guidelines cannot currently be assessed.

Conclusion(s): Reports based on ASRM/SART Registry data can be enhanced by refined casemix adjustment, assessing outcome rates per patient, as well as per component of ART procedure, and by providing an indication of the statistical significance of observed differences in event rates. In addition, a critical appraisal of available evidence related to particular aspects of infertility management would help clarify the areas in which there is an evidentiary basis for formulation of practice guidelines, as well as topics requiring additional clinical research.