Abstract
The association between the use of assisted reproductive technology (ART) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) risk in offspring has been explored in several studies, but the result is still inconclusive. We assessed the risk of ASD in offspring in relation to ART by conducting a meta-analysis. A literature search in PubMed, Embase, and Web of Knowledge databases through April 30, 2016 was conducted to identify all the relevant records. Risk ratios (RRs) and 95% confidence intervals (95%CIs) were computed to analyze the strength of association by using fixed- or random-effect models based on heterogeneity test in total and subgroup analyses. Analysis of the total 11 records (3 cohort studies and 8 case-control studies) revealed that the use of ART is associated with higher percentage of ASD (RR = 1.35, 95% CI: 1.09–1.68, P = 0.007). In addition, subgroup analyses based on study design, study location and study quality were conducted, and some subgroups also showed a statistically significant association. Our study indicated that the use of ART may associated with higher risk of ASD in the offspring. However, further prospective, large, and high-quality studies are still required.
Highlights
For male factor infertility were associated with increased risk of autistic disorder and intellectual disability in offspring compared with fresh embryo transfer procedures without ICSI13
This is consistent with the finding from Kissin et al, who claimed that the children from pregnancies using intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) are at higher risk for the incidence of autism compared with conventional IVF14
We have found a significant association between ART and the risk of ASD in European and Asian populations
Summary
For male factor infertility were associated with increased risk of autistic disorder and intellectual disability in offspring compared with fresh embryo transfer procedures without ICSI13. It may be important to adjust for parental characteristics because users of ART are more likely than fertile individuals both to be of increased age and to have chromosomal abnormalities. These studies have proven to be informative, no study to date has concurrently examined the general risk of ASD in offspring in relation to their exposure to ART versus natural conception. We performed this study to systematically assess the association of the use of ART and ASD risk
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