So let’s start with a definition for ART –
At CDC, we use the definition stipulated in the federal mandate (and really, the most commonly used medical definition). ART includes those treatments in which both eggs and sperm are retrieved and medically handled.
115,392 procedures reported to CDC in 2002
45,751 infants born after ART in US (1.1% of all US births)
This is a list of outcomes that are of concern; the actual empiric evidence is quite variable. Some have been fairly well studied, while for others, such effects on puberty, future fertility, and long-term chronic disease risk, there has been little to no study, but there is concern based on the data for more proximal outcomes.
I’ve organized this list sequentially in terms of when an effect is observed, beginning with direct embryo effects such as fragmentation and cleavage rates and progressing to long-term child and adult outcomes. However, many of these effects may have similar origins and critical time periods for exposure.