Assisted Reproductive Technologies in the Republic of Kazakhstan: A 6-Year Trend Analysis from Efficacy to Availability

BACKGROUND: The first child after in vitro fertilization (IVF) in the country was born in 1996. However, registering and recording data on assisted reproductive technologies (ARTs) in Kazakhstan is not mandatory. The purpose of the current study was to assess the treatment outcomes, availability, regulations, and ART cycles trends between 2011 and 2016. METHODS: Cycle-based data were collected from voluntarily participating ART centers and then descriptive analysis was performed. The study included 10470 ART cycles using different ART methods during 2011–2016. The availability rate of ART in the country was calculated by dividing the number of treatment cycles per million of the population. RESULTS: The availability of ART per million inhabitants increased by 53.6%, from 236.9/million in 2011, to 364.0/million in 2016. In IVF cycles, clinical pregnancy rates (PRs) per aspiration remained stable, on average 37.1%. After ICSI, the average PR was 42.5%. In frozen embryo replacement cycles, there was an increase in the PR per transfer from 37.0% in 2011, to 42.5% in 2016, on average 39.2%. CONCLUSION: Assisted reproductive technologies are developing rapidly in Kazakhstan; therefore, ART monitoring should be improved and become mandatory. Although the data is not yet representative, the most compelling evidence points to low access to ART. Since the use of ART in Central Asian countries is infrequent in comparison to European countries, there is a need to combine IVF data across different nations. This will allow for a deeper assessment of the scientific evidence and reduction of infertility burden through joint efforts.