The results of fertility treatments in our country vary widely. This is evident from a never-before-published quality report.
Every year, thousands of women in our country who cannot become pregnant spontaneously opt for IVF or in-vitro fertilization. In this treatment, an egg is fertilized in a dish in the laboratory, after which the embryo is placed in the uterus. In Belgium, 18 centers are allowed to fully perform this treatment.
Until now, patients had no insight into what results the hospitals are achieving and whether there are any differences between them. Until now. De Tijd obtained the quality report of the College for Reproductive Medicine through the Freedom of Information Act. This shows that the chances of success of IVF vary greatly.
Worrying
For example, the chance of a live birth in the AZ Jan Palfijn in Ghent was 26 percent in recent years, while in the AZ Sint-Jan in Bruges it was more than twice as high. More than six in ten women (62%) gave birth there after a first attempt of an ‘IVF baby’. Across all fertility centers, the average chance of having a child is 47 percent.
The results only concern women under the age of 36 who follow an IVF process with their own eggs. They make up about half of all patients who choose treatment and have the best prognoses. If older patients are also taken into account, the average chance of success drops to about 35 percent. No details per hospital are known for this larger group. In our country, women up to the age of 43 are reimbursed for IVF.
Various fertility experts call the differences in success between the centers worrying. ‘Even though the general level of IVF medicine is high, the fact that the figures vary so much raises questions. What is the cause of this and can it be remedied?’ asks Willem Verpoest, the chairman of the Belgian Association for Reproductive Medicine (BSRM). He states that ‘an unfulfilled desire to have children is accompanied by a lot of sadness and stress’.
Improvement process
Verpoest emphasizes that there is ‘noise’ in the report, because the data provided by the centers is incomplete. They also do not take into account patient characteristics that could negatively influence the outcome, such as smoking behavior or obesity. ‘Nevertheless, we should not ignore the centers that consistently score less well. It would be good if they were investigated by an independent body and, if necessary, given an improvement program.’
This is not only in the interest of the patient, the government can also benefit from it. Since 2003, it has reimbursed for up to six IVF attempts. The expenditure of the RIZIV (National Institute for Health and Disability Insurance) for fertility treatments and medicines varies between 22 and 25 million euros per year.
Minister of Health Frank Vandenbroucke (Vooruit) states that experts must further analyze the varying chances of a successful IVF procedure. ‘We will then determine whether any actions need to be taken. We will then take this up with the Board.’
