text: 001708.2008.09.17
  A report from the CDC discovered that one in every 100 babies born in the United States was produced through in vitro fertilization and a great number of those were multiple births. Dr. Ed Hill tells us more about the study in today's 60 Second Housecall.
  One in 100 babies born in this country was conceived in a test tube—and half these babies were twins, triplets or higher multiple births, according to a report by the Centers for Disease Control.
  The data come from 422 of the 475 U.S. medical centers that provide assistance to people with fertility problems.
  Because IVF is expensive, and has a one in three chance for success, doctors most often implant multiple embryos into a woman's womb. The result: 49 percent of in vitro babies came in multiple births.
  While IVF led to one percent of births, it accounted for 16 percent of twins and 38 percent of triplets or higher multiples. Twins and higher multiples are at high risk of being born prematurely, creating what the CDC estimates as a one billion dollar health problem.
  The report notes that one in 10 U.S. women of reproductive age has consulted a doctor for infertility issues. In 1996, there were at least 64,681 in vitro procedures reported to the CDC. In a decade, that number more than doubled to 134,260.