Teens born from assisted pregnancies may have higher blood pressure
Reproductive technologies such as in vitro fertilization may put kids at risk of hypertension
Assisted pregnancies give infertile couples the chance at a child. But kids conceived with reproductive technologies, such as in vitro fertilization, or IVF, were more likely to develop high blood pressure as adolescents than their naturally conceived counterparts, a new study finds.
Of 52 teens conceived with technological help, eight had hypertension, defined as blood pressure greater than 130/80 millimeters of mercury. Only one teen of 43 conceived naturally had the same high blood pressure, researchers report online September 3 in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. High blood pressure raises the risk of later stroke and heart attack, among other health problems.