Facts and myths in serological screening of ART couples

Serological screening of couples attending for ART therapy is now common practice. The frequency of such screening is a topic of debate as few publications have addressed this question. Emerging evidence shows that the ART population has similar prevalence of infectious diseases compared with the general EU population. The need to pursue repeat screening is mainly related to the risk of seroconversion in this highly selected population. The evidence presented here shows that seroconversion among cohabitating ART couples is negligible. Even if a theoretical risk of seroconversion during therapy exists, with correct laboratory practice the risk of cross-contamination is negligible as laboratory processing eliminates the infective risk. As such ART laboratory processing of contaminated samples becomes an indication rather than a risk. To strengthen the evidence it is recommended that data on prevalence and incidence should be prospectively collected by all ART units.