Determining the status of non-transferred embryos in Ireland: a conspectus of case law and implications for clinical IVF practice

Sills, Eric Scott; Murphy, Sarah

doi:10.1186/1747-5341-4-8

Cited by 9 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 22 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Recent research has explored selected aspects of AHR in Ireland including compensation for IVF gamete donors and their privacy [13], embryo disposition [14] and abandonment of IVF embryos in Ireland [15]. While these reports did yield original information, the findings were limited because they were based on data derived only from individuals already seeking medical fertility consultation.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The lack of Irish legislation on AHR has become more problematic as the number of patients seeking fertility treatments in Ireland has increased, resulting in an intractable health policy puzzle of expanding dimensions [ 10 - 12 ]. Recent research has explored selected aspects of AHR in Ireland including compensation for IVF gamete donors and their privacy [ 13 ], embryo disposition [ 14 ] and abandonment of IVF embryos in Ireland [ 15 ]. While these reports did yield original information, the findings were limited because they were based on data derived only from individuals already seeking medical fertility consultation.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Irish public opinion on assisted human reproduction services: Contemporary assessments from a national sample

Walsh

Sills

Collins

et al. 2013

Clin Exp Reprod Med

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

ObjectiveTo measure Irish opinion on a range of assisted human reproduction (AHR) treatments.MethodsA nationally representative sample of Irish adults (n=1,003) were anonymously sampled by telephone survey.ResultsMost participants (77%) agreed that any fertility services offered internationally should also be available in Ireland, although only a small minority of the general Irish population had personal familiarity with AHR or infertility. This sample finds substantial agreement (63%) that the Government of Ireland should introduce legislation covering AHR. The range of support for gamete donation in Ireland ranged from 53% to 83%, depending on how donor privacy and disclosure policies are presented. For example, donation where the donor agrees to be contacted by the child born following donation, and anonymous donation where donor privacy is completely protected by law were supported by 68% and 66%, respectively. The least popular (53%) donor gamete treatment type appeared to be donation where the donor consents to be involved in the future life of any child born as a result of donor fertility treatment. Respondents in social class ABC1 (58%), age 18 to 24 (62%), age 25 to 34 (60%), or without children (61%) were more likely to favour this donor treatment policy in our sample.ConclusionThis is the first nationwide assessment of Irish public opinion on the advanced reproductive technologies since 2005. Access to a wide range of AHR treatment was supported by all subgroups studied. Public opinion concerning specific types of AHR treatment varied, yet general support for the need for national AHR legislation was reported by 63% of this national sample. Contemporary views on AHR remain largely consistent with the Commission for Assisted Human Reproduction recommendations from 2005, although further research is needed to clarify exactly how popular opinion on these issues has changed. It appears that legislation allowing for the full range of donation options (and not mandating disclosure of donor identity at a stipulated age) would better align with current Irish public opinion.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Irish public opinion on assisted human reproduction services: Contemporary assessments from a national sample

Walsh

Sills

Collins

et al. 2013

Clin Exp Reprod Med

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…For Irish IVF patients and the physicians who offer this treatment here, the challenge to define proper testing is particularly acute given the absence of any legislation dealing with assisted reproductive techniques here [10]. The current report is the first to aggregate screening data from recipients who underwent anonymous donor oocyte IVF in Ireland; no positive screens were identified among 225 consecutive IVF cases completed during the study interval.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Recipient screening in IVF: First data from women undergoing anonymous oocyte donation in Dublin

et al. 2011

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

BackgroundGuidelines for safe gamete donation have emphasised donor screening, although none exist specifically for testing oocyte recipients. Pre-treatment assessment of anonymous donor oocyte IVF treatment in Ireland must comply with the European Union Tissues and Cells Directive (Directive 2004/23/EC). To determine the effectiveness of this Directive when applied to anonymous oocyte recipients in IVF, we reviewed data derived from selected screening tests performed in this clinical setting.MethodsData from tests conducted at baseline for all women enrolling as recipients (n = 225) in the anonymous oocyte donor IVF programme at an urban IVF referral centre during a 24-month period were analysed. Patient age at programme entry and clinical pregnancy rate were also tabulated. All recipients had at least one prior negative test for HIV, Hepatitis B/C, chlamydia, gonorrhoea and syphilis performed by her GP or other primary care provider before reproductive endocrinology consultation.ResultsMean (±SD) age for donor egg IVF recipients was 40.7 ± 4.2 yrs. No baseline positive chlamydia, gonorrhoea or syphilis screening results were identified among recipients for anonymous oocyte donation IVF during the assessment interval. Mean pregnancy rate (per embryo transfer) in this group was 50.5%.ConclusionWhen tests for HIV, Hepatitis B/C, chlamydia, gonorrhoea and syphilis already have been confirmed to be negative before starting the anonymous donor oocyte IVF sequence, additional (repeat) testing on the recipient contributes no new clinical information that would influence treatment in this setting. Patient safety does not appear to be enhanced by application of Directive 2004/23/EC to recipients of anonymous donor oocyte IVF treatment. Given the absence of evidence to quantify risk, this practice is difficult to justify when applied to this low-risk population.

show abstract

“…While this case is not related to access to assisted reproduction, it is a powerful social and political precursor to the current political conditions in which legislation on assisted reproductive technology languishes. Article 40.3.3 has created a sticking point around the question of when life begins and whether the constitutional protection pertains to embryos in vitro ( McDonnell and Allison, 2006 , Sills and Murphy, 2009 ).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Enduring politics: the culture of obstacles in legislating for assisted reproduction technologies in Ireland

Allison¹

2016

Reproductive Biomedicine & Society Online

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Assisted reproductive technology has become a normalized part of reproductive medicine in many countries around the world. Access, however, is uneven and inconsistent, facilitated and restricted by such factors as affordability, social and moral acceptance or refusal and local cultures of medical practice. In Ireland, assisted reproductive technology has been available since 1987 but remains unregulated by legislation. This creates an uncertain and untenable legal circumstance given the contested issues related to constitutional protection of the right to life of the unborn and the indeterminate legal status of embryos in vitro. This paper examines the impact of an enduring political impasse. It explores how clinical assisted reproductive technology services in Ireland operate both inside and outside dominant institutional frameworks, meeting a pronatalist and pro-family social and political agenda, while sometimes contradicting the pro-life politics that has continued to shape women’s reproductive lives. The medical approaches to infertility thus intersect with the ongoing debates around abortion, the failure of the government to regulate, and notions of embodied motherhood and responsibility within changing meanings of family and kinship. At the same time women and their partners seek assisted reproductive technology treatment in other countries throughout the European Union where laws differ and availability of services varies. A decade has passed since the Commission on Assisted Human Reproduction in Ireland released its recommendations; the enduring legislative vacuum leaves women, families and practitioners in potential legal limbo.

show abstract

Determining the status of non-transferred embryos in Ireland: a conspectus of case law and implications for clinical IVF practice

Cited by 9 publications

References 22 publications

Irish public opinion on assisted human reproduction services: Contemporary assessments from a national sample

Irish public opinion on assisted human reproduction services: Contemporary assessments from a national sample

Recipient screening in IVF: First data from women undergoing anonymous oocyte donation in Dublin

Enduring politics: the culture of obstacles in legislating for assisted reproduction technologies in Ireland

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About