Barbara Luke

Michigan State University | MSU · Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Biology

As the proportion of births conceived with assisted reproductive technology (ART) continues to increase, a growing body of literature continues to examine the risks involved such as the higher risk of birth defects. Recently, several studies have suggested that ART-conceived children may have a greater risk of childhood cancer. This population-base...

STUDY QUESTION What are the associations between a history of cancer and outcomes after ART? SUMMARY ANSWER Compared to women without cancer, on average, women with cancer had a lower return for embryo transfer and a lower likelihood of clinical pregnancy and live birth after ART. WHAT IS KNOWN ALREADY Small, single-institution studies have sugge...

Background: Fertility preservation (FP) may be underused after cancer diagnosis because of uncertainty around delays to cancer treatment and subsequent reproductive success. Methods: Women aged 15 to 39 years diagnosed with cancer between 2004 and 2015 were identified from the North Carolina Central Cancer Registry. Use of assisted reproductive...

Background: There is emerging evidence that children with complex congenital heart defects (CHDs) are at increased risk for childhood lymphoma, but the mechanisms underlying this association are unclear. Thus, we sought to evaluate the role of DNA methylation patterns on "CHD-lymphoma" associations. Methods: From >3 million live births (1988-200...

STUDY QUESTION Is there an association between fertility status, method of conception and the risks of birth defects and childhood cancer? SUMMARY ANSWER The risk of childhood cancer had two independent components: (i) method of conception and (ii) presence, type and number of birth defects. WHAT IS KNOWN ALREADY The rarity of the co-occurrence o...

Purpose Women face multiple barriers to fertility preservation after cancer diagnosis, but few studies have examined disparities in use of these services. Methods Women aged 15–39 years diagnosed with cancer during 2004–2015 were identified from the North Carolina Central Cancer Registry and linked to the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technolo...

Background Assisted reproductive technology (ART) usage has increased annually since the first birth in 1978, with over 8 million children born after ART globally.¹ In the UK, the proportion of children born after ART has increased from 0.5% in 1992 to 2% in 2017.² Previous evidence suggests that children born after frozen embryo transfers are heav...

Purpose To generate a large cohort of children born after assisted reproductive technology (ART) in the UK between 1992 and 2009, their naturally conceived siblings (NCS) and matched naturally conceived population (NCP) controls and linking this with health outcome data to allow exploration of the effects of ART. The effects of fresh and frozen emb...

PurposeTo compare academic achievement in reading and mathematics at the end of sixth grade and progress from third to sixth grade by children conceived with in vitro fertilization (IVF) to those conceived naturally.Methods This was a retrospective population-based cohort study of IVF-conceived singleton and twin children who took the 3rd grade and...

Purpose Excess embryos transferred (ET) (> plurality at birth) and fetal heartbeats (FHB) at 6 weeks’ gestation are associated with reductions in birthweight and gestation, but prior studies have been limited by small sample sizes and limited IVF data. This analysis evaluated associations between excess ET, excess FHB, and adverse perinatal outcome...

Background The consequences of an infertility diagnosis extend beyond the pursuit of family building, as infertile women also face increased risks of severe maternal morbidity, cancer, and chronic disease. Objective To examine the association between female infertility and all-cause mortality. Study Design Retrospective analysis of 72,786 inferti...

STUDY QUESTION What is the association between ART conception and treatment parameters and the risk of birth defects? SUMMARY ANSWER Compared to naturally conceived singleton infants, the risk of a major nonchromosomal defect among ART singletons conceived with autologous oocytes and fresh embryos without use of ICSI was increased by 18%, with inc...

As the worldwide use of assisted reproductive technologies (ART) continues to grow, there is a critical need to assess the safety of these treatment parameters and the potential adverse health effects of their use in adults and their offspring. While key elements remain similar across nations, geographic variations both in treatments and population...

(Abstracted from Am J Obstet Gynecol 2020;222:350.e1–350.e13) With an increasing proportion of pregnancies being conceived using assisted-reproductive technology, important changes to in vitro fertilization (IVF) such as the use of cryopreserved oocytes or embryos have been made. It is now established that adverse maternal and infant perinatal outc...

Importance: Children with birth defects have a greater risk of developing cancer, but this association has not yet been evaluated in children conceived with in vitro fertilization (IVF). Objective: To assess whether the association between birth defects and cancer is greater in children conceived via IVF compared with children conceived naturall...

There exist conflicting data in regard to the health outcomes of offspring born to infertile couples and follow up of offspring can be challenging. The objective of the study was to determine the association between infertility in men and women and the mental health of their offspring. The present study analyzes data obtained from the IBM Marketsca...

Objective To evaluate if there are differences in standardized testing results at the end of third grade between children conceived with the use of in vitro fertilization (IVF) and those conceived spontaneously. Design Retrospective population-based cohort. Setting Texas public school system. Patient(s) Singleton and twin children 8–9 years of a...

Background Severe maternal morbidity continues to be an issue of national and global concern and is increasing in incidence. The incidence of infertility is also on the rise, and infertile women experience a higher risk of incident chronic medical disease and cancer, suggesting that fertility may serve as a window to a woman’s overall health. Obje...

Background: Although in vitro fertilization (IVF) has been associated with an increased risk for hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, the association of risk with IVF treatment parameters is unclear. Objective: To evaluate risk for hypertensive disorders of pregnancy by maternal fertility status, and IVF treatment parameters. Study design: Wom...

Importance In vitro fertilization (IVF) is associated with birth defects and imprinting disorders. Because these conditions are associated with an increased risk of childhood cancer, many of which originate in utero, descriptions of cancers among children conceived via IVF are imperative. Objective To compare the incidence of childhood cancers amo...

Purpose To evaluate the risk of prematurity and infant mortality by maternal fertility status, and for in vitro fertilization (IVF) pregnancies, by oocyte source and embryo state combinations. Methods Women in 14 States who had IVF-conceived live births during 2004–13 were linked to their infant’s birth and death certificates; a 10:1 sample of non...

Objective To assess the attitudes of Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology (SART) members regarding expanding insurance coverage for patients seeking assisted reproductive technologies (ART) and identify some of the factors that may influence such attitudes. Design An anonymous online 14-question survey of SART membership; 1,556 surveys wer...

Background: Over the past 2 decades the characteristics of women giving birth in the United States and the nature of the births themselves have changed dramatically, with increases in older maternal age, plural births, cesarean deliveries, and conception from infertility treatment. Objective: We sought to evaluate the risk of severe maternal mor...

Objective: To analyze factors associated with high live birth rate and low multiple birth rate in fresh and frozen-thawed assisted reproductive technology (ART) cycles. Design: Retrospective cohort analysis. Setting: Not applicable. Patient(s): The study population included 181,523 women undergoing in vitro fertilization with autologous fres...

Purpose: The aim of this study is to evaluate frequency of hospitalization before, during, and after assisted reproductive technology (ART) treatment by cycle outcome. Methods: Six thousand and one hundred thirty women residing in Massachusetts undergoing 17,135 cycles of ART reported to the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology Clinic Ou...

Background: Assisted reproductive technology (ART) has been associated with birth defects, but the contributions of multiple births and underlying subfertility remain unclear. We evaluated the effects of subfertility and mediation by multiple births on associations between ART and nonchromosomal birth defects. Methods: We identified a retrospect...

Background: Births to subfertile women, with and without infertility treatment, have been reported to have lower birthweights and shorter gestations, even when limited to singletons. It is unknown whether these decrements are due to parental characteristics or aspects of infertility treatment. Objective: To evaluate the effect of maternal fertil...

Across the reproductive spectrum, obesity is associated with greater risks for adverse health outcomes, including higher rates of infertility, subfertility, early pregnancy loss, fetal deaths and stillbirths, congenital anomalies, and pregnancy complications. The excess reproductive morbidity associated with obesity may increase with longer duratio...

Background: It is unknown whether the risk of adverse outcomes in twin pregnancies among subfertile women, conceived with and without in vitro fertilization, differs from those conceived spontaneously. Objective: We sought to evaluate the effects of fertility status on adverse perinatal outcomes in twin pregnancies on a population basis. Study...

Background Children born from fresh in vitro fertilization (IVF) cycles are at greater risk of being born smaller and earlier, even when limited to singletons; those born from frozen cycles have an increased risk of large-for-gestational age (LGA) birthweight (z-score ≥1.28). This analysis sought to overcome limitations in other studies by using pa...

Study question: Does ICSI improve outcomes in ART cycles without male factor, specifically in couples with a history of tubal ligation as their infertility diagnosis? Summary answer: The use of ICSI showed no significant improvement in fertilization rate and resulted in lower pregnancy and live birth (LB) rates for women with the diagnosis of tu...

Purpose The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of changing fertility status on perinatal outcomes of singleton siblings, conceived with and without assisted reproductive technology (ART). Method A longitudinal cohort study of Massachusetts resident women having two consecutive singleton births during 2004–2010 was performed. Women w...

The Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology (SART) was established within a few years of assisted reproductive technology (ART) in the United States, and has not only reported on the evolution of infertility care, but also guided it toward improved success and safety. Moving beyond its initial role as a registry, SART has expanded its role to...

Purpose: The purpose of the present study is to estimate the proportion of women with cancer who return to use the embryos that they have banked and to compare this proportion to that of women without cancer who bank embryos. Methods: This is a cohort study of three groups of women from New York, Texas, and Illinois who used embryo banking in th...

Objective: To assess the validity of outcome data reported to the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology Clinic Outcome Reporting System (SART CORS) compared with data from vital records and the birth defects registry in Massachusetts. Design: Longitudinal cohort. Setting: Not applicable. Participant(s): A total of 342,035 live births...

Objective: To evaluate factors associated with elective single-embryo transfer (eSET) utilization and its effect on assisted reproductive technology outcomes in the United States. Design: Historical cohort. Setting: Not applicable. Patient(s): Fresh IVF cycles of women aged 18-37 years using autologous oocytes with either one (SET) or two (d...

Objectives: We examined the prevalence of Early Intervention (EI) enrollment in Massachusetts comparing singleton children conceived via assisted reproductive technology (ART), children born to mothers with indicators of subfertility but no ART (Subfertile), and children born to mothers who had no indicators of subfertility and conceived naturally...

Objective: To assess whether risk of severe maternal morbidity at delivery differed for women who conceived using assisted reproductive technology (ART), those with indicators of subfertility but no ART ("subfertile"), and those who had neither ART nor subfertility ("fertile"). Methods: This retrospective cohort study was part of the larger Mass...

Background: It is unknown whether data obtained from maternal self-report for assisted reproductive technology treatment parameters and reproductive history are accurate for use in research studies. Objectives: We evaluated the accuracy of self-reported in assisted reproductive technology treatment and reproductive history from the Upstate KIDS...

A persistent finding is that assisted reproductive technology (ART) is associated with compromised birth outcomes, including higher risks for prematurity, low birthweight, and congenital malformations, even among singletons. Over the past decade, our research group, the Massachusetts Outcome Study of Assisted Reproductive Technology (MOSART), has e...

STUDY QUESTION How do the assisted reproductive technology (ART) outcomes of women presenting for ART after cancer diagnosis compare to women without cancer?

Objective To evaluate the risk of cancer after assisted reproductive technology (ART) therapy. Design Longitudinal cohort study. Setting Not applicable. Patient(s) New York, Texas, and Illinois residents between 2004 and 2009, treated with ART, comprising cycles of 113,226 women, including 53,859 women without prior ART treatment, who were linked t...

To evaluate the correlation between total gonadotropin dose and live birth rate. Retrospective analysis. Not applicable. A total of 658,519 fresh autologous cycles of in vitro fertilization (IVF) reported to the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology from 2004 to 2012. None. Logistic regression models were fitted to live birth rates with the...

In 2012 there were 135,943 infants of multiple pregnancies born in the United States, nearly a 2-fold increase since 1980, with twins accounting for 96% of all multiple births. To date, most perinatal morbidities associated with multiple births have proven resistant to technological or pharmaceutical interventions. Maternal nutrition can have a pro...

To evaluate risks for adverse pregnancy outcomes by number of embryos transferred (ET) and fetal heartbeats (FHB) in assisted reproductive technology-conceived singleton live births. Longitudinal cohort using cycles reported to the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology Clinic Outcomes Reporting System between 2004 and 2008 among women who we...

To assess the validity of maternally reported assisted reproductive technologies (ART) use and to identify predictors of reporting errors. Linkage study. Not applicable. A total of 5,034 (27%) mothers enrolled, from whom 4,886 (97%) self-reported information about use of infertility treatment, including ART, for the index birth. None. Four measures...

To compare the risks for adverse pregnancy and birth outcomes by diagnoses with and without assisted reproductive technology (ART) treatment to non-ART pregnancies in fertile women. Historical cohort of Massachusetts vital records linked to ART clinic data from Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology Clinic Outcome Reporting System. Not applic...

To use a validated prediction model to examine whether single embryo transfer (SET) over two cycles results in live birth rates (LBR) comparable to two embryos transferred (DET) in one cycle, while reducing the probability of a multiple birth (i.e., multiple birth rate, MBR). Prediction models of LBR and MBR for a woman considering ART developed fr...

To compare on a population basis the birth outcomes of women treated with assisted reproductive technologies (ART), women with indicators of subfertility but without ART, and fertile women. Longitudinal cohort study. Not applicable. A total of 334,628 births and fetal deaths to Massachusetts mothers giving birth in a Massachusetts hospital from Jul...

To determine if number of retrieved oocytes correlates with live birth rate and incidence of low birth weight (LBW). Retrospective cohort. Not applicable. Women undergoing fresh embryo transfer with the use of either autologous (n = 194,627) or donor (n = 37,188) oocytes whose cycles were reported to the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology...

Purpose To compare ages of mothers and of fathers at delivery in couples who are fertile, subfertile, and subfertile treated with assisted reproductive technology (ART) and to characterize birth outcomes in the ART population according to paternal age. Methods Live birth deliveries in Massachusetts between July, 2004 and December, 2008 were iden...

Objective To model morphological assessments of embryo quality that are predictive of live birth. Design Longitudinal cohort using cycles reported in the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology Clinic Outcomes Reporting System (SART CORS) between 2007 and 2011. Setting Clinic-based data. Patient(s) Fresh autologous assisted reproductive tec...

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate assisted reproductive technology (ART) pregnancy outcomes by infertility diagnosis. STUDY DESIGN: ART data on women who were treated and gave birth in Massachusetts were linked to vital records and hospital utilization data. Live births were categorized by 8 mutually exclusive ART diagnoses. Risks of prematurity, low birthwei...

To evaluate the risk of cancer after assisted reproductive technology (ART) therapy. Longitudinal cohort study. Not applicable. New York, Texas, and Illinois residents between 2004 and 2009, treated with ART, comprising cycles of 113,226 women, including 53,859 women without prior ART treatment, who were linked to their respective state cancer regi...

Objective: To develop a model predictive of live-birth rates (LBR) and multiple birth rates (MBR) for an individual considering assisted reproduction technology (ART) using linked cycles from Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology Clinic Outcome Reporting System (SART CORS) for 2004-2011. Design: Longitudinal cohort. Setting: Clinic-base...

To compare length of gestation after assisted reproductive technology (ART) as calculated by three methods from the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology Clinic Outcome Reporting System (SART CORS) and vital records (birth and fetal death) in the Massachusetts Pregnancy to Early Life Longitudinal Data System (PELL). Historical cohort study....