RBMO, the international journal, publishes an Instituto Bernabeu study concluding that embryo freezing does not affect the birth weight of newborn babies

Concern for the health of newborn babies has increased as use of embryo cryopreservation techniques has incremented. Instituto Bernabeu researchers determined to check if embryo freezing could lead to increased baby weight at birth and affect the future health of children born following application of assisted reproduction treatment techniques.

The research and its conclusions have sparked the interest of international scientific journal Reproductive Biomedicine Online (RBMO), which has published the study entitled ‘Vitrification does not affect birth weight: lessons from the oocyte donation model’.

The study’s point of departure was existing research addressing a possible increase in the birth weight of babies born following transfer of frozen embryos and the impact this may have on their health.

Embryologist Nerea Díaz, one of the lead researchers involved in the Instituto Bernabeu study, explains that the research compared the weight at birth of babies that were born following transfer of 670 fresh and frozen embryos to oocyte receivers. The researchers selected egg donation as the study technique because it eliminates the impact of factors such as ovarian stimulation and the mother’s age.

The study showed that there are no differences between the birth weights of babies from cryopreserved embryos and babies from transfers without cryopreservation, and confirmed the safety of current techniques. “Cryopreservation is a commonly-used technique in reproductive medicine. Our study ratifies the safety of the procedures we adhere to at our clinics and, by dispelling doubts about everything we associate with embryo freezing, it gives our patients peace of mind,” the expert points out.

Vitrification does not affect birth weight: lessons from the oocyte donation model

J. Llácer, N. Díaz, E. Serrano-Revuelta, E. Álvarez, JC. Castillo, JA. Ortiz, J. Ten, A. Bernabeu, R. Bernabeu