The European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology (ESHRE) is steadfast in its commitment to advancing knowledge, fostering research, and promoting best practices in the field of reproductive medicine and embryology. In alignment with our objectives and in collaboration with global peers, a curated session with ESHRE’s special interest group Global and Sociocultural Aspects of Infertility, at the esteemed 2023 World Congress of the International Federation of Fertility Societies (IFFS) that was held in Athens, Greece, from 10 to 13 September 2023.

The first ESHRE good practice recommendations for RIF have now been published. Professor Nick Macklon, chair of ESHRE’s working group on RIF, outlines the challenges in defining and managing this elusive condition for which there are many treatments.

Yakoub Khalaf, professor of reproductive medicine and surgery at Guy's and St Thomas' Hospital and King's College London, looks at the evidence for treatment protocols and add-on approaches. Managing the expectations of patients is also key, he says.

Reproductive endocrinologist Professor Richard Legro, whose research career has focused on the diagnosis, treatment and genetic/environmental causes of PCOS, talks to Focus on Reproduction about the wider implications of weight loss in women with PCOS and metabolic syndrome trying to conceive. Paradoxically, he says, weight loss will not always improve outcome.

The responsibility for setting rules on infectious disease screening in MAR will most likely move to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) following the current revision of the EU legislation on Substances of Human Origin. To support this process, the ECDC has established a new network and invited ESHRE to participate in its first in-person meeting last week.

Some studies are cited more widely than others – and others are never quoted. Human Reproduction editor-in-chief Professor Nils Lambalk shares his insights into how to get your research noticed.

Professor Juan García-Velasco, chief scientific officer for IVIRMA Global, talks to Focus on Reproduction about his precongress course presentation on why PGTA will never increase success rates, his belief that all IVF patients should have a chromosomal assessment, and why the term ‘mosaic’ has outlived its purpose.

Does a biological connection matter? Professor Susan Golombok from the University of Cambridge discusses findings from the first study into the long-term effect of ART on family relationships.

Vitrification has been a game-changer in fertility preservation. However, there is still room for improvement with oocyte freezing. Professor Maria José De los Santos Molina, from IVIRMA Valencia, outlines methods to increase the survival rate including altering the lab environment.

As his term as editor of FoR comes to an end, Simon Brown, editor since May 2007, looks back at the publication’s progress and the shift from print to online production.