SUMMARY ANSWER The available high- quality evidence indicates that specific treatments may give rise to different effects on cognitive development , with certain treatments , including ICSI , associated with cognitive impairment .
STUDY QUESTION Does  fertility treatment  influence cognitive ability in school aged children , and does the impact vary with the type of treatment ?
WHAT IS KNOWN ALREADY Previous review s of the literature concerning cognitive outcomes among children conceived with medical assistance have concluded that study findings are generally ' reassuring ' , but limited attention has been paid to the quality of this research .
In addition , no review has separately assessed the range of treatment modalities available , which vary in invasiveness , and thus , potentially , in their effects on developmental outcomes .
Families with children conceived by donor insemination: a follow-up at age twelve.
Growing public awareness of the use of donor insemination ( DI ) to enable infertile couples to become parents has been accompanied by increasing concern regarding the potentially negative consequences for family relationships and child development . Findings are presented from a prospect i ve study of the quality of parenting and psychological adjustment of DI children at age 12 . Thirty-seven DI families , 49 adoptive families , and 91 families with a naturally conceived child were compared on st and ardized interview and question naire measures administered to mothers , fathers , children , and teachers . The differences between DI families and the other family types reflected greater expressive warmth of DI mothers toward their children and less involvement in the discipline of their children by DI fathers . The DI children were well adjusted in terms of their social and emotional development . The findings are discussed with respect to the secrecy surrounding DI and the imbalance in genetic relatedness between the parents and the child
SUMMARY ANSWER The available high- quality evidence indicates that specific treatments may give rise to different effects on cognitive development , with certain treatments , including ICSI , associated with cognitive impairment .
STUDY QUESTION Does  fertility treatment  influence cognitive ability in school aged children , and does the impact vary with the type of treatment ?
WHAT IS KNOWN ALREADY Previous review s of the literature concerning cognitive outcomes among children conceived with medical assistance have concluded that study findings are generally ' reassuring ' , but limited attention has been paid to the quality of this research .
In addition , no review has separately assessed the range of treatment modalities available , which vary in invasiveness , and thus , potentially , in their effects on developmental outcomes .