title: Looking downstream: a review of the literature on physical and psychosocial health outcomes in adolescents and young adults who were conceived by ART.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The use of assisted reproductive technology (ART) is now well established in many countries and the first generations of offspring are reaching maturity. We reviewed the published literature to describe the available evidence about health outcomes in ART-conceived young people who were of an adolescent age or older.
  
  
  METHODS
  The EMBASE, Medline and PsychINFO databases were searched from January 1998 to October 2010. Key inclusion criteria were that the study sample have a mean age of ≥ 12 years or a mean follow-up period of ≥ 12 years and were conceived by ART.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Seven publications reported physical health outcomes and 10 reported psychosocial health outcomes in ART offspring. Compared with control groups, some differences in physiological outcomes in relation to growth and development, chronic illness and risk of cancer have been reported. Overall, psychosocial studies of ART-conceived young people indicate that their cognitive function and psychological and social adjustment are similar to that of comparison groups.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Overall, nine ART-conceived populations of this age group have been studied. Most samples included < 300 participants and methodologies varied between studies. Health information on this age group is therefore limited and the clinical significance of the findings remains unclear. Further research focusing on ART-conceived young adults is needed, particularly in relation to neurological health outcomes where no studies have been reported to date.
authors.affiliation: Public Health Genetics, Murdoch Childrens Research Institute, Parkville 3052, Australia. cate.wilson@mcri.edu.au
authors.forename: C L
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: Wilson
authors.forename: J R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Fisher
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Hammarberg
authors.forename: D J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Amor
authors.forename: J L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Halliday
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000293:Adolescent; D041923:Adolescent Development; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010287:Parent-Child Relations; D027724:Reproductive Techniques, Assisted / Q000523:psychology*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D055815:Young Adult