Kourtney Kardashian says IVF caused early menopause: What experts want you to know

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Kourtney Kardashian's comments about trying to conceive a child with her fiancé Travis Barker through IVF is causing concern among experts.

In a now-deleted clip promoting the upcoming series "The Kardashians", the 42-year-old claims that she experienced a number or side effects after undergoing in vitro fertilization (IVF).

In the clip, Kardashian tells her mom Kris Jenner that IVF “hasn’t been the most amazing experience."

“The medication that they’ve been giving me, they put me into menopause," Kardashian tells Jenner. "Literally into menopause.”

Kardashian also said the treatments led to weight gain, which then spurred rude comments and speculation about her being pregnant online.

Dr. Ari Baratz, a reproductive endocrinology and infertility specialist, tells Yahoo Canada he's surprised by Kardashian’s claims about going into early menopause — and says there is likely more to the story.

What is IVF?

In vitro fertilization (IVF) is a “complex series of procedures used to help with fertility or prevent genetic problems and assist with the conception of a child.”

During IVF, mature eggs are retrieved from the ovaries and fertilized by sperm in a lab. The fertilized egg, or the embryo, is then transferred to a uterus. According to the Mayo Clinic, IVF is the “most effective” form of assisted reproductive technology.

IVF can be used to treat infertility in patients who experience unexplained fertility, blocked or damaged fallopian tubes and ovulation disorders. It's also considered a form of treatment for male reproductive issues, such as low sperm count or low sperm motility, in which case the sperm move too slow to travel to the egg for fertilization.

The IVF process begins with patients taking fertility medications to stimulate egg production prior to retrieval. The number of eggs retrieved can vary from patient to patient and depend on a number of factors, including a patient's age (which can impact egg quality) and their ovarian reserve (the number of eggs a person has left).

To increase a patient's chances for success, the goal is to retrieve as many eggs as possible during the 10-15-minute procedure, since not all eggs will develop beyond fertilization.

Once an egg is successfully fertilized, it takes about two to four days for experts to gauge whether or not the embryo is developing correctly. Experts will determine the quality of the eggs and how many to allocate for embryo transfer into a patient's uterus.

According to New York University Langone Health, it takes an additional nine days after embryo transfer for the human chorionic gonadotropin (hCg) that signal a developing pregnancy to reach detectable levels.

Is there a link between IVF and early menopause?

When it comes to fertility treatments, there are side effects that could happen during the process. However, the Southern California Reproductive Center (SCRC) calls any claims that IVF and fertility medications cause a patient to enter early menopause a “persistent rumour.”

According to the SCRC, it’s a false theory that fertility drugs, which “stimulate the ovaries to mature and release 10 to 15 eggs” instead of the single egg that is released naturally each month, may lead to “running out of eggs” earlier.

The Texas Fertility Center seconds that statement, saying fertility medications increase the chance of pregnancy, but "not the rate at which a woman reaches menopause."

Menopause occurs when a woman has gone 12 consecutive months without having a period, thus marking the end of her female reproductive years.

The average age for menopause is 51 for women in both Canada and the U.S., however it can occur to women in their late 40s and early 50s as well. Women can also experience perimenopause, which is when the ovaries begin slowly producing less estrogen, eight to 10 years before full menopause.

Early menopause is therefore a term applied to women who experience permanent period loss before their 40s.

Baratz tells Yahoo Canada around one per cent of women will go into an earlier than 40-year-old menopause, which is called premature ovarian failure.

There are different reasons why someone would go into premature menopause, including having had surgery that removes the ovaries, smoking, certain medical conditions and family history.

Can IVF cause early menopause?

Baratz has worked in reproductive medicine for over 20 years and says he was quite shocked by Kardashian’s comments regarding IVF and early menopause.

“Modern fertility treatments like IVF have been around since the late '70s and the current drug regimens that we use are at least 20-30 years old," he explains. "No one has ever demonstrated through any research or population-based studies that women who go through fertility treatments or in women who are sub or infertile that are or are not exposed to these drugs have any higher or lower risk of menopause."

Baratz, who is also the president of the board of directors at Fertility Matters Canada, says a woman’s reserve of eggs is predetermined at birth. A mixture of genetics and lifestyle or other exposures, including surgeries or infections, will influence whether a woman will go into earlier or later menopause.

Baratz adds that the brief exposure to fertility drugs in a woman’s lifetime “does not have that level of impact.”

He cautions that we may be only hearing part of the story and we don’t know Kardashian’s medical and family history that may be playing a role in her fertility process.

“We know that women who approach their 40s already have a decline in ovarian function,” he says. “It’s not uncommon for women who are in their early to mid-40s to start experiencing changes that could be associated with menopause, but that would be completely independent of fertility drug exposure.”

What are other side effects of fertility treatments?

Many women will experience side effects when undergoing fertility treatments, including IVF. Some of the most common ones include mood changes, breast tenderness, nausea, headaches and ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome, which causes painful swelling in the ovaries.

According to Kardashian, fertility medication caused her to gain weight.

In an interview with Yahoo, Dr. Jenna Turocy of the Columbia University Fertility Center in New York, says bloating is a common side effect of hormone medications, including birth control.

Turocy says the injectible hormone medication used to stimulate the ovaries prior to egg retrieval "can cause some women to feel bloated, retain fluid and gain weight."

Baratz confirms any weight gain during the IVF procedure is temporary and will go away within one menstrual cycle.

According to Baratz, a patient's full medical history is taken prior to undergoing any fertility treatments as well as a physical exam.

“We confirm her height, weight, we check the ovarian reserve to make sure we are not over or under dosing the given individual to try and tailor and customize the treatment to minimize those side effects,” he says.

Expert advice for anyone thinking about fertility treatments

There are a number of different fertility options that are dependent on every woman’s personal situation. Resources like Fertility Matters Canada can offer advice such as when a couple should be seeking medical advice regarding their fertility journey.

Baratz recommends seeking out medical advice and counselling as the first step for your fertility journey. He says it’s important to ensure a person is comfortable with their medical provider and to deal with any medical issues that could affect the quality of a person's eggs.

Fertility treatments can be costly. Baratz advises potential patients to become familiar with the costs associated with procedures so that they can feel comfortable with their investment. Not every benefit package covers the expenses of fertility therapies.

“It’s always better to meet with someone on the sooner side, otherwise you might miss the opportunity to achieve reproductive success and build the family of your dreams,” he says.

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