What proportion of couples undergoing unrestricted in vitro fertilization treatments can expect to bear a child?

A 200-patient cohort has been established so that longitudinal analysis can determine the likelihood of an individual in vitro fertilization (IVF) entrant achieving a viable uterine pregnancy or a live baby. After a minimum of 39 months of access to repeated treatment cycles, 24% have achieved at least one viable pregnancy by undergoing an average of 2.48 treatment cycles per cohort member. Life-table analysis shows that most of these pregnancies have occurred in the first year after entering the program. Many members have undergone only one or two treatment cycles. In the future, greater emphasis will need to be placed on factors which encourage couples to undergo additional cycles of treatment. This, as much as technical advances, may increase outcome figures.