Steroids
Steroids can be used to treat a vast number of medical conditions, such as acutely for flare up of autoimmune conditions, acute asthma attacks and inflammatory bowel disease or more chronic use such as low dose steroids in cases of adrenal insufficiency. Systemic exposure to steroids has been associated with an increase in orofacial clefts in the infant, although results are conflicting, and there is insufficient data on miscarriage rates, preterm delivery and intrauterine growth restriction (51). In this review, we were unable to find any studies that analysed data on men or women taking long term steroids prior to or during ART treatment and the affect this has on reproductive outcomes. The potential unknown risks of taking these medications are often outweighed by the risk of deteriorating maternal or paternal health with associated reproductive outcomes (52).