How to compare fertility clinic outcomes
Start with treatment, age and diagnosis groups that match the question you are asking. Then check the actual treatment count and published definition beside the outcome. A clinic with a higher unadjusted rate may treat a different patient group.
Use the same denominator
Per intended retrieval includes attempts that never reached transfer. Per transfer excludes those attempts. New-patient cumulative results count people and follow-up retrievals. These measures answer different questions; comparing their percentages as if they were interchangeable is misleading.
Read gaps and small groups
CDC withholds some small-group values and publishes fractions for others. A protected value is not zero. An unpublished count is not a known small sample. The explorer preserves those states and blocks derived estimates when required inputs are missing.
Questions for a clinic
Ask which offices and patient groups its reporting unit covers, whether its current care differs from the historical report, and how its experience relates to your clinical situation. Annual cycles measure attempts, not unique patients or treatment quality.
Analysis and explanation by Chang Xu. Sources: CDC outcome definitions and CDC technical notes.