Medical, cognitive, emotional, and behavioral outcomes in school-age children conceived by in-vitro fertilization.
Assessed long-term effects of assisted reproduction technologies of in-vitro fertilization (IVF) and related techniques of embryo transfer (ET) on children's adjustment. 51 school-age Israeli children conceived by IVF/ET were compared with 51 control-matched children conceived spontaneously. The assessment included a comprehensive medical evaluation, a psychological examination, teachers' reports, parents' reports, and children's self-reports. As compared with controls, IVF/ET children did not reveal significant differences in physical and neurological status or on cognitive measures of IQ, visual-motor coordination, visual memory, and verbal comprehension. Nevertheless, the IVF/ET children were scored lower by teachers on measures of socioemotional adjustment in school and on self-report measures of anxiety, aggression, and depression. Among IVF/ET children, the tendency to be at a greater risk for emotional disturbances was exacerbated among boys and among children whose parents were older.
Levy-Shiff
R
R
Department of Psychology, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan, Israel. levyra@mail.biu.ac.il
Vakil
E
E
Dimitrovsky
L
L
Abramovitz
M
M
Shahar
N
N
Har-Even
D
D
Gross
S
S
Lerman
M
M
Levy
I
I
Sirota
L
L
Fish
B
B
D000342:Affective Symptoms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology*; D002648:Child; D002653:Child Behavior Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology*; D002671:Child, Exceptional / Q000523:psychology*; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology*; D002658:Developmental Disabilities / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology*; D004624:Embryo Transfer / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D005307:Fertilization in Vitro / Q000523:psychology*; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007360:Intelligence; D008297:Male; D010552:Personality Assessment; D011247:Pregnancy; D012917:Social Adjustment