Menopause is defined as the permanent cessation of menstruation that occurs after the loss of ovarian follicular function. The name is derived from the Greek words menos meaning month and pausis (cessation). It marks the end of the reproductive lifespan and is accompanied by changes within the neuroendocrine system that manifest in clinical symptoms classically associated with menopause. Menopause can occur naturally (spontaneously) or be induced through a medical intervention (surgery, chemotherapy or pelvic radiation therapy).

Assisted reproduction technology (ART) encompasses fertility treatments which require manipulation of oocyte, sperm or both in vitro. This chapter aims to provide an overview of ART, including indications for treatment as well as the procedures involved. This will also include complications of ART as well as the evidence assessing the perinatal outcomes of children resulting from ART.

In November 1929, clinicians first attempted to develop an ‘ovary stimulating hormone’ extracted from the human placenta for the treatment of symptoms resulting from the menopause. The team at Montreal General Hospital named it ‘Emmenin’ and it had to be purified from the urine of pregnant women to be administered orally. It was later discovered that pregnant mares’ urine could provide an abundant supply of a compound with high estrogenic activity. This conjugated equine estrogen (CEE) was commercially produced as Premarin and made available as an oral estrogenic agent in 1939.