Incidence of hypertension, stroke, coronary heart disease, and diabetes in women who have delivered after in vitro fertilization: a population-based cohort study from Sweden

Objective To compare the incidence of hypertension, stroke, coronary heart disease, and diabetes in women who have delivered after in vitro fertilization (IVF) with those who delivered after natural conception. Design A cohort study in Sweden between 1990 and 2008. Setting Sweden. Patient(s) 23,498 women who had given birth to a child after IVF and 116,960 individually matched women. Intervention(s) None. Main Outcome Measure(s) Incidence rates of hypertension, diabetes, stroke, and coronary heart disease in both groups. Result(s) Inpatient and outpatient diagnoses of hypertension, stroke, coronary heart disease, and diabetes were identified by linkage to the Swedish National Patient Register. The mean time of follow-up was 8.6 years in both groups. Multivariable analysis showed that hypertension had a higher incidence in IVF mothers with a hazard ratio (HR) of 1.27, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.13–1.41, as compared with mothers from the Medical Birth Register. There was a trend to a higher incidence of stroke (HR 1.27; 95% CI, 0.96–1.68), but the incidence of coronary heart disease and diabetes did not differ. Conclusion(s) Hypertension was more prevalent in the IVF group, which suggests that these women should be aware of their blood pressure and cardiovascular risk profile.