The Effect Of Medical And Social Factors On The Health Of Children Born As A Result Of ART In Late Reproductive Age Women

Abstract

Background — This article is dedicated to the study of the effect of medical and social factors on the health of children born as a result of assisted reproductive technology (ART) in late reproductive age (LRA) women. Every year, there is a deterioration in the reproductive health of married couples, an increase in the frequency of infertile marriages, as well as an increase in the number of women over 35 years of age who gave birth to children as a result of ART. Material and Methods — The study included 648 children (4-6 years old) born as a result of ART by women aged 35-45 years (the main group: MG). All children resided in the city of Samara. The control group (CG) included 648 children (4-6 years old) who were born from spontaneous conception and met the following criteria: their mother’s age at birth exceeding 35 years, their age from 4 to 6 years, born from a singleton full-term (≥37 weeks of gestation) pregnancy. The main distinguishing feature between the MG and CG was birth after using ART. The children’s health was assessed comprehensively, based on the results of physical and medical examinations, and a study of the child’s development history. The course of pregnancy and childbirth, along with maternal morbidity, based on outpatient medical records, as well as their social and hygienic characteristics based on questionnaire data, were investigated. The following research methods were employed: sociological (questionnaire), direct observation, analytical, and statistical. Results — We assessed children’s health as follows: the subgroup with good health included 18.0% of children in the MG vs. 21.9% in the CG (p=0.055). The proportion of the subgroup of children with poor health was 56.2% in the MG vs. 36.1% in the CG (p=0.048). Conclusion — We identified 18 significant risk factors that negatively affected the health of children born as a result of ART in LRA women.