The study has no external funding; all costs are covered by ESHRE. There are no competing interests.

Compared with previous years, the reported number of ART cycles in Europe has increased, pregnancy rates have increased marginally, even though fewer embryos were transferred and the multiple delivery rates have declined.

The 13th ESHRE report on ART shows a continuing expansion of the number of treatment cycles in Europe, with more than half a million of cycles reported in 2009. The use of ICSI has reached a plateau. Pregnancy and delivery rates after IVF and ICSI remained relatively stable compared with 2008 and 2007. The number of multiple embryo transfers (3+ embryos) and the multiple delivery rate have shown a clear decline.

In comparison with previous years, there was an increase in the reported number of ART cycles in Europe. For the first time in 5 years, the pregnancy rates failed to show a year-on-year increase. Compared with 2007, the number of transfers of multiple embryos (3+) and a multiple delivery rate showed a marginal decline.