Aneuploidy screening of oocytes and embryos in an assisted reproduction An overview

For women in advanced maternal age years > 35 years an increased incidence of numerical chromosomal aberrations are reported. This is considered to be the main cause for the decreasing likelihood of a live birth and the increasing risk of a miscarriage in this age group. Different approaches are available for a negative selection of oocytes or embryos with respect to the chromosomal status. The polar bodies of oocytes, cells of an embryo in the stadium of a blastomere or cells of the throphectoderm of a blastocyst can be screened for aneuploidies. Furthermore, non-invasive techniques, which refrain from a biopsy of an oocyte or embryo, are being developed. Especially for the procedure of a biopsy of the polar bodies of an oocyte, which is in Germany without further restrictions possible, a review of the positive effects from a cost-effectiveness perspective seems mandatory.