UK: About eighty IVF pregnancies per year end in abortion

Figures collected by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority show that one per cent of assisted conceptions account for a tiny proportion of all abortions. 

The exact reasons for the terminations - which amount to an average of about 80 a year, or one percent of assisted conceptions - are unclear, but will include medical problems with the fetus as well as social grounds, such as a relationship breakdown, BBC News Online reports.

‘Selective reduction’ abortions, when one fetus is removed to improve the survival chances of another in a multiple pregnancy, are also included.

The figures from the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority, which regulates IVF clinics in the UK, were obtained as part of a Freedom of Information request. The story was originally published in the Sunday Times.

They show that the proportion of fetuses aborted remained stable between 1991 and 2008, the last year for which data was available. In that year there were 65 terminations in 6,723 pregnancies.

The 18-34 age group saw the highest number of abortions, with 23 terminations, but they also had significantly more pregnancies than older IVF patients.

There was no information on the number of abortions of IVF pregnancies which had originally been funded by the NHS. Public provision of IVF is patchy, and many couples pay thousands of pounds to undergo fertility procedures privately.

Professor Bill Ledger, a member of the HFEA said: ‘I had no idea that there were so many post-IVF abortions and each one is a tragedy’, while former conservative MP Ann Widdecombe said some were treating babies like ‘designer goods’.

But Susan Seenan of the Infertility Network UK advised caution.

‘Anyone who has undergone IVF knows what a long and difficult experience it can be. To make the decision to then terminate that pregnancy cannot be one that anyone takes lightly. I would imagine there are some pretty good reasons.’

Laura Riley, a spokesperson for the bpas, said:

‘Women and couples who have had donor insemination or IVF to become pregnant are unfortunately no more immune from the harsh vagaries of life than others who are lucky enough to be able to conceive naturally. Any woman can experience overwhelming life difficulties, such as intense relationship pressures or the diagnosis of a serious or lethal fetal medical problem. These may mean that she feels unable to continue with the pregnancy.’

There were 189,100 abortions in England and Wales in 2009, meaning that abortions following assisted conception account for 0.04% of all abortions.

80 IVF foetuses are aborted a year, figures show. BBC News Online, 7 June 2010

BPAS comment on HFEA statistics regarding abortion after licensed fertility treatment. Press release, 7 June 2010