Assisted reproductive technology in Australia and New Zealand 2002

Assisted Reproductive Technology in Australia and New Zealand 2002 presents information on all assisted reproductive technology (ART) treatments that took place in 2002 and the resulting pregnancies and births. It is the first report using data from the Australian and New Zealand Assisted Reproduction Database (ANZARD) implemented in 2002. Unlike the previous data collection ANZARD permits linkage between treatment characteristics and pregnancy and birth outcomes, thus allowing a comprehensive description of ART success. Data is provided to ANZARD by every fertility centre in Australia and New Zealand.

The report includes information on all ART techniques, including in vitro fertilisation (IVF), intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), gamete intrafallopian transfer (GIFT), the cryopreservation and thaw of embryos, donor insemination, and treatment involving donated gametes or embryos. The report presents specific data on pregnancy success rates and how they vary by treatment type, cause of infertility, and women’s age. It also includes information on birth outcomes such as multiple birth, gestational age, birth weight, and perinatal mortality.

The report will be particularly useful to health professionals providing clinical services or otherwise working on infertility and ART, those conducting research in ART techniques and outcomes, members of the government and media, and couples considering treatment through ART.

From this year, the report on Assisted reproductive technology in Australia and New Zealand has two components:

1. The report is available in both electronic and printed formats.
2. Supplementary tables (Tables W1 to W23) are available only in electronic format.

Highlights

Treatment

• During 2002, 36,483 treatment cycles were attempted in Australia and New Zealand. Of these, 90.3% (32,958) took place in Australia and 9.7% (3,524) in New Zealand.
• In Australia, there were 8.0 treatment cycles per 1,000 women of reproductive age (15-44 years). Correspondingly, in New Zealand, there were 4.2 cycles per 1,000 women of reproductive age (15-44 years).
• More than half (54.5%) of cycles involved fresh, non donor oocytes or embryos, a third (31.1%) used frozen, non donor oocytes or embryos and 4.8% used oocytes or embryos received from a donor. The remaining 9.4% of cycles were artificial insemination using donated sperm.
• The average age of women undergoing treatment in 2002 was 35.2 years. Their partners were aged on average 37.6 years. This was the first year in which national data were available on the age of consumers of assisted reproduction treatment.
• For fresh, non donor cycles, 18.3% of all cycles started resulted in the delivery of at least one live baby. For frozen, non donor cycles, 13.7% of all cycles in which embryos were thawed resulted in the delivery of at least one live baby.
• In 2002, the majority (94.2%) of treatment cycles transferred one or two embryos. This represents a considerable change in treatment protocol from 1993 in which less than half of cycles (44.6%) transferred one or two embryos.
• The success of fresh, non donor treatment varied by women's age. Women aged 25-29 years achieved the greatest success, with 25.9% of initiated cycles achieving a live delivery. Women aged 40-44 years had a success rate of 6.1%.

Pregnancies and births

• There were 7,577 pregnancies reported in the 2002 cohort, resulting in 6,816 live born babies.
• The average age of women giving birth was 34.4 years, 5.2 years older than the average age of Australian mothers in 2001 (29.2 years). Women giving birth in the 2002 cohort were also slightly older than their 2000 predecessors who were aged, on average, 33.6 years.
• There were 1,103 (18.9%) multiple deliveries in the 2002 cohort. Most (1,070) were deliveries of twins and a small proportion (33) were triplets. There were no quadruplet deliveries.
• Almost half (48.0%, 2,807) of deliveries were by Caesarean section.
• The average gestational age of all babies was 37.2 weeks. More than a quarter (27.3%) of babies were born preterm with a gestational age of less than 37 weeks.
• The average birthweight of all babies was 2,985 grams. Babies born with low birthweight (<2,500 g) made up 21.7% of all babies, which is less than the 26.4% of babies with low birthweight in 2000.
• There were 121 reported perinatal deaths in the 2002 cohort. This represents a decline in the perinatal mortality rate from 20.7 deaths per 1,000 births in 2000 to 17.3 deaths per 1,000 births in 2002.