Air pollution can cut the chances of having a baby with IVF by 38%

The team looked at exposure to fine particulate matter in the fortnight before egg collection and also air-pollutant concentrations over four periods during an eight-year study in Perth.

The findings indicate that, even when there is “excellent overall air quality”, the negative impact remains.

The team are presenting the findings today at the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology’s 40th annual meeting in The Netherlands.

They found that exposure to fine particulate matter exposure in the fortnight before egg collection cut the odds of a live birth by 38%, when the highest exposure was compared to the lowest.

The research included 3,659 frozen-embryo transfers from 1,836 patients. The women’s median age was 34.5 when the eggs were retrieved and 36.1 when the frozen embryo was transferred.

They examined the concentration of air pollution at 24 hours, at two weeks, at one month, and at three months before egg retrieval.

Increasing levels of pollution in the three months before egg retrieval were also associated with lower odds of a successful birth.

The team also cautioned that these effects were seen at a time when the overall air quality in Perth was considered “excellent”.

High levels of two kinds of pollution passed safe guidelines on just 0.4% and 4.5% of the study days, respectively.

Particulate matter is all solid and liquid particles suspended in the air, such as dust, pollen, soot, smoke, and liquid droplets, while NO2 causes inflammation of the airways in high doses, which can cause irreversible damage to the respiratory system. 

Poor air quality causes around 1,300 needless deaths in Ireland every year.

Lead author Sebastian Leathersich said that this is the first study to separately examine the effects of pollution during development of eggs and around the time of embryo transfer and early pregnancy.

“These findings suggest that pollution negatively affects the quality of the eggs, not just the early stages of pregnancy, which is a distinction that has not been previously reported,” he said.

“It is already accepted outdoor air pollution is one of the greatest environmental risks to health and is estimated to cause over 4m premature deaths per year worldwide.

• The study abstract is published on Monday in the journal Human Reproduction.