title: Growth and development of children born after in vitro fertilization.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate growth and development of children born after IVF treatment.
  
  
  METHODS
  Literature review.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  At present there is substantial evidence that children born after IVF are at increased risk for adverse perinatal outcome, congenital malformations, and rare epigenetic defects. It is still unclear whether observed health problems originate from the IVF procedure itself or the underlying subfertility problems of the parents. Current follow-up studies regarding postnatal growth and morbidity rates are scarce with conflicting results and other areas of long-term research in children born after IVF are still in its infancy. The importance of the worldwide continuing monitoring of children born after IVF to investigate potential long-term consequences including the development of cardiovascular diseases is therefore highlighted.
authors.affiliation: Department of Paediatrics, Institute for Clinical and Experimental Neuroscience, VU University Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Manon
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ceelen
authors.forename: Mirjam M
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: van Weissenbruch
authors.forename: Jan P W
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Vermeiden
authors.forename: Flora E
authors.initials: FE
authors.lastname: van Leeuwen
authors.forename: Henriette A
authors.initials: HA
authors.lastname: Delemarre-van de Waal
mesh_terms: D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000209:etiology / Q000235:genetics; D002648:Child; D002657:Child Development; D000013:Congenital Abnormalities / Q000209:etiology / Q000235:genetics; D047108:Embryonic Development; D004777:Environment; D044127:Epigenesis, Genetic; D005260:Female; D005307:Fertilization in Vitro / Q000009:adverse effects*; D047109:Fetal Development; D018507:Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental; D018392:Genomic Imprinting; D006801:Humans; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000209:etiology / Q000235:genetics; D011247:Pregnancy; D011256:Pregnancy Outcome