Children conceived using fertility treatment may be at higher risk of asthma and eczema

Children born to women who underwent fertility treatment are associated with an increased risk of developing asthma, eczema, and other related allergies, despite their parental predisposition.

A study published in Human Reproduction has determined that children whose mothers' received fertility treatment, were 55 percent more likely to have a persistent wheeze at age three than their naturally-conceived peers. By seven to nine years of age, children were 56 percent more likely to develop asthma verified by a physician. Moreover, they were 69 percent more likely to develop eczema and 46 percent more likely to be prescribed allergy-related medicines compared to children conceived without fertility treatment. These differences were found to be statistically significant, with adjustment for parental asthma and other risk factors.

'Asthma and allergic conditions are some of the most common chronic diseases affecting children,' Dr Edwina Yeung, of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development in Bethesda, Maryland and senior author of the study told the Daily Mail. 'An important research direction to pinpoint a mechanism will be to clarify and unravel the impacts of fertility medications or procedures themselves from underlying subfertility.'

Dr Yeung and her fellow researchers studied 5034 mothers, across 57 New York counties, and their 6171 children born between 2008 and 2010. Within the middle of their childhood 2056 children had taken part in a follow-up questionnaire to see if asthma or any allergies persisted. Fertility treatments that any mothers underwent, including IVF, and ovulation induction (via oral or injectables).

This study has indicated a potential link of a shared biological outcome between the fertility treatments, and the children conceived from using them, developing asthma. Although the mechanism is unknown, researchers theorised that this may have caused the conceived fetus to experience hormone levels outside the normal physiological range. However, researchers also speculate that those mothers who underwent fertility treatment may be more likely to receive diagnoses from physicians on behalf of their children. This could be due to their higher socioeconomic background or because they are more likely to seek medical care due to undergoing previous fertility treatments.

'Until we have a better understanding of an underlying mechanism, the implications for clinical practice are limited,' Dr Kristen Polinski first author of the study told Healio.

The authors have suggested that additional studies are needed, which are necessary to conclude how fertility treatment, or parental infertility, may result in their children presenting a higher risk for asthma and allergies.