Risks of Complications with Assisted Reproduction
Mild ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS), including ovarian enlargement, lower abdominal bloating, and mild weight gain, occurs at a rate of 5-20 percent. Severe OHSS requiring hospitalization occurs in one percent of patients. Bleeding, infection, damage to internal organs at egg retrieval are all rare complications (<1%). Multiple gestation rates vary between programs, and with the age of the woman. National statistics from IVF cycles performed in 2007 with nondonor eggs show that in women under age 35, 32.8 percent of liveborns were twins, and 1.8 percent were livebirths of triplets or more.
Observational cohort studies have shown an increased prevalence of ovarian cancer in infertile populations compared to controls. However, in these cohorts, patients who received injected medications for assisted reproduction showed no increase above that of the infertile cohort.
Send Feedback to: 
