Assisted Reproduction · Registries and Reporting
RRM Academy Synopsis
UK IVF and donor insemination cycles fell 20% during COVID-19 in 2020
Among licensed UK clinics, IVF and donor insemination cycles fell 20% from 2019 to 2020, the national fertility regulator's register report found. NHS-funded IVF cycles fell 35%, while privately funded cycles fell 13%. The report also draws on a late-2021 patient survey.
Key Findings
- IVF and donor insemination cycles fell from 74,765 in 2019 to 59,667 in 2020, a 20% decrease. Fresh embryo transfer IVF fell 28%, frozen embryo transfer IVF 11%, and donor insemination 10%.
- NHS-funded IVF cycles fell 35% from 2019 to 2020, against 13% for privately funded cycles. NHS-funded cycles had not reached 2019 levels by June 2021, except in December 2020.
- IVF cycles fell 25% among patients aged 18-34 and 15% among patients aged 40-50. Cycles fell 22% for patients in heterosexual relationships and 6% for patients in female same-sex relationships.
- IVF cycles fell 39% in Wales, 27% in Scotland and 19% in England. Northern Ireland is excluded because one clinic with about 1,200 cycles had data reporting errors.
- Among patients treated in 2020 or 2021, 28% (N=710) said COVID-19 delayed the start of their clinic cycles, and 10% (N=502) said it delayed speaking with a general practitioner.
Interpretation
The report compares clinic register data for 2019 and 2020 and adds a patient survey from late 2021. The authors call the 2020 and 2021 cycle data unvalidated, so the statistics are not official statistics. About 2,400 cycles were excluded after reporting errors at one clinic in England. NHS-funded cycles can take place in private clinics, and privately funded cycles in NHS clinics. The authors note that the delays in reaching a general practitioner are self-reported and that they cannot assess the cause. A data migration prevented the use of 2020 and 2021 outcome data, and the report gives no pregnancy or live birth results.
RRM Context
The report counts cycles. Each one is a round of IVF or donor insemination. IVF goes around the reproductive system and does not find out why conception has not happened. Restorative reproductive medicine evaluates both partners to find the cause, then treats it. Survey respondents described going to appointments without their partners during the pandemic.
Abstract
This HFEA report, Impact of COVID-19 on fertility treatment 2020, presents UK statistics for IVF and DI treatment, storage and donation during the COVID-19 pandemic. The report states that fertility treatments were suspended across the UK on 15 April 2020 and that clinics could apply to reopen from 11 May 2020 by submitting a self-assessment. According to the report, IVF and DI treatments decreased overall by 20% from 2019 to 2020, while embryo storage increased by 6% and was the only activity to increase. The report uses unvalidated treatment data for 2020 and 2021 and states that these statistics cannot be classified as official statistics.
