Britain has one of the worst fertility treatment safety records in Europe, according to new figures published by the European Society for Human Reproduction and Embryology, the Independent newspaper reported on Sunday.
British women in the quest for high pregnancy rates at British in-vitro fertilization (IVF) clinics are at risk of developing serious complications up to four times higher than in other countries carrying out similar numbers of fertility treatments, the figures show.
Complications from IVF treatment from the use of drugs to stimulate the production of eggs can range from severe bloating and vomiting, to kidney failure, and even death in rare cases.
Britain has the highest levels of ovarian hyper stimulation syndrome (OHSS), the most serious and potentially fatal side-effect of IVF treatment, the figures show.
At least two women with OHSS have died in the past three years, and there are fears of more cases going unrecorded.
An HFEA (Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority) commissioned report found severe OHSS occurs in about one percent of treatment cycles in Britain.
According to the report, researchers found Germany carried out in 2003 almost three times as many IVF cycles -- implantations of fertilized embryos -- as Britain, but Britain had nearly three times more cases of OHSS, and in 2004, France carried out nearly twice as many IVF cycles as Britain, but its OHSS rate was a quarter of that in British clinics.
The figures have been compiled on the eve of a major international fertility conference to open in London on Thursday to debate how fertility treatments should be made safer, which would include the use of less intensive drug treatments.
Source: Xinhua
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