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Linking Birth and Infant Death Records With Assisted Reproductive Technology Data: Massachusetts, 1997–1998

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Objectives: To link data from the US assisted reproductive technology (ART) registry with the Massachusetts birth–infant death file to create a comprehensive dataset on the circumstances surrounding conception and maternal and infant outcomes for a population of ART-conceived infants. Methods: The authors sought to link data for 3704 ART-conceived live-born infants from 2703 deliveries in 1997–1998 involving Massachusetts resident mothers who gave birth in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, or Connecticut to their corresponding Massachusetts birth record using a two-stage algorithm. Maternal and infant dates of birth served as the primary linkage variables. Maternal names for a subset of the ART-conceived infants were obtained and used in the second stage of the algorithm to confirm a sample of records that matched in Stage I, to resolve duplicate matches, and to link unmatched records. Results: In Stage I, 78% of ART deliveries matched with only one Massachusetts record, 2% matched with two records, and 20% remained unmatched. Overall, the complete algorithm using maternal name data for a portion of records yielded an 89% linkage rate. Nearly all of the records that matched during Stage I that were evaluated with maternal name data in Stage II were confirmed as correctly linked. Conclusions: This project confirms that high-yield data linkage can be achieved in the absence of specific identifiers (e.g., name and social security number). Nonetheless, additional matches were achieved when name data were obtained. This linkage creates the first population-based file in the US capturing detailed information on ART births.

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Abbreviations

ASRM:

American Society for Reproductive Medicine

ART:

Assisted reproductive technology

CDC:

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

DOB:

Dates of birth; IDOB, Infant date of birth

MDOB:

Maternal date of birth

SART:

Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology

triplet/+:

Triplet or higher order

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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The activities conducted to perform this research were funded under Purchase Order (0000068163) with the Division of Reproductive Health, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Department of Health and Human Services. The authors acknowledge the member clinics of the Massachusetts Consortium of Assisted Reproductive Technology Epidemiologic Research (MCARTER) for their vital support and assistance in the CDC-Massachusetts Department of Public Health assisted reproductive technology linkage project. The ART data used for this study were collected using the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology (SART) ART reporting system. This data system was developed by SART in 1986. Since 1995, data from the SART system have been used by the CDC to calculate pregnancy success rates for ART clinics operating in the United States. This system is jointly supported by SART, the American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM), and the CDC. The authors thank SART and ASRM, without whose contributions this work would not have been possible.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Reproductive Health, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, USA

    Saswati Sunderam Ph.D., Laura A. Schieve Ph.D., Gary Jeng Ph.D., Meredith Reynolds Ph.D., Victoria Wright M.P.H., Christopher Johnson M.S. & Maurizio Macaluso M.D., Dr.P.H.

  2. Massachusetts Department of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts, USA

    Bruce Cohen Ph.D. & Zi Zhang M.D., M.P.H.

  3. CDC Mailstop E-86, 1600 Clifton Road, Atlanta, GA, 30333, USA

    Laura A. Schieve Ph.D.

Authors
  1. Saswati Sunderam Ph.D.
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  2. Laura A. Schieve Ph.D.
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  3. Bruce Cohen Ph.D.
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  4. Zi Zhang M.D., M.P.H.
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  5. Gary Jeng Ph.D.
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  6. Meredith Reynolds Ph.D.
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  7. Victoria Wright M.P.H.
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  8. Christopher Johnson M.S.
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  9. Maurizio Macaluso M.D., Dr.P.H.
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The Massachusetts Consortium for Assisted Reproductive Technology Epidemiologic Research (MCARTER)

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Sunderam, S., Schieve, L.A., Cohen, B. et al. Linking Birth and Infant Death Records With Assisted Reproductive Technology Data: Massachusetts, 1997–1998. Matern Child Health J 10, 115–125 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-005-0013-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-005-0013-7

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