Assisted Reproduction · Registries and Reporting
RRM Academy Synopsis
UK IVF Own-Egg Cycles Led to a Live Birth 1 in 4 Times
This is the UK fertility regulator's registry report on IVF cycles using a woman's own fresh eggs, covering every licensed clinic in 2013 and 2014. About 25 out of 100 cycles led to a live birth. For women under 35, about 33 out of 100 cycles led to a live birth.
Key Findings
- In 2013, the live birth rate per cycle started using a woman's own fresh eggs was 26.5% overall, and 32.8% for women aged 18 to 34.
- The multiple pregnancy rate for IVF using a woman's own fresh eggs fell from 16.6% of pregnancies in 2013 to 15.9% in 2014.
- 41.3% of IVF cycles were funded by the NHS in 2014, and the remaining 58.7% were funded privately, a split that has stayed steady since 2011.
- 816 women started an egg-freezing cycle in 2014, up 25% from 2013. Thawing cycles also rose 25%, to 129.
- Since 1991, the live birth rate per cycle started rose from 14.0% to 26.5% by 2013, and IVF accounted for 2.1% of all UK births that year.
Interpretation
The source is a government registry. It is not a controlled study. The registry lists outcomes reported by every licensed UK clinic for cycles started in 2013 and 2014. The numbers show what happened. They do not show why. Live birth rates use two different bases across the tables. Some count every cycle that started. Others count only embryo transfers. The two bases are not the same. The report only covers women treated at a licensed clinic. The report says nothing about couples outside that system. Age strongly predicts the reported rates. But when a group is small, the reported rate can shift sharply from year to year, even with no real change.
RRM Context
The registry does not study restorative reproductive medicine. It reports IVF, ICSI, and donor insemination cycles at licensed UK clinics. The value here is a method lesson. A success rate depends on which base is used: cycles started, or embryo transfers. Results also drop sharply with age. Any fertility outcome should be checked the same way. Who was counted? What base was used, cycles started or transfers? What happened to cycles that did not reach a transfer?
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