Globalisation and market orientation: A challenge within reproductive medicine

Abstract

Assisted reproductive technologies (ARTs) are a rapidly growing segment of the global health market. Thriving innovation and translation into practice, an increasing use of invasive procedures manipulating gametes, embryos and women’s bodies, increasingly involving third parties for gamete donation or surrogacy, and identification of new target groups are some of the driving factors. Moreover, cross-border fertility services are proliferating along legal and economic asymmetries. Hence, current reproductive health care is at risk of overusing ARTs as response to a perceived increase of infertility and numerous market opportunities. This chapter unfolds some of the ramifications of the ARTs landscape highlighting ‘side’ effects on the health of women and their children born to such arrangements.