In-Vitro Fertilization
In vitro fertilization (IVF) in the simplest sense is fertilization of a woman’s egg cell outside of her body. It was originally developed as a way to allow women with blocked or absent fallopian tubes to become pregnant.
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This critically timed, carefully coordinated procedure involves removing the mature eggs from a woman’s ovary, fertilizing them with sperm, incubating the resulting embryos in a laboratory under carefully monitored conditions, then transferring the developing embryos into the woman’s uterus with hopes of establishing implantation.
Many patients are surprised to learn that IVF is not their only treatment option. However, IVF would be the first line of treatment for patients with the following conditions:
- Women who experienced various unsuccessful artificial insemination treatment attempts
- Women suffering from advanced endometriosis, with probable repercussions on the Fallopian tubes and on oocyte quality
- Advanced maternal age patients, with low-quality oocytes
- Women with an absence of or damaged Fallopian tubes
- Women with hydrosalpinx
- Couples in the case of which it is necessary to carry out Genetic Screening
- Couples with males showing poor sperm quality (moderate or severe male factor infertility)
IVF process
To make a baby we need :
A HEALTHY EGG
A healthy egg from a partner or donor
HEALTHY SPERM
Healthy sperm from a partner or donor
A MEETING PLACE
A place for the sperm and egg to meet and grow (a healthy, receptive uterus)
This may require working with…
A HEALTHY EGG
A healthy egg from a partner or donor
HEALTHY SPERM
Healthy sperm from a partner or donor
A MEETING PLACE
A place for the sperm and egg to meet and grow (a healthy, receptive uterus)
We work with sperm banks, egg donors, and agencies to help our patients secure what they need to achieve their parenting dreams. The process can be as simple as ordering donor sperm or locating an appropriate egg donor or gestational carrier, or as complex as planning for all three.
Whatever your needs, we’re here to help. We’ll find a plan that works for you.
Treatment Begins
Oral contraceptive pills may begin on day 2 to 4 of your cycle after all pre-treatment testing has been completed. Birth control pills may be taken anywhere from two to five weeks. These will reduce the risk of ovarian cysts forming, aid in the synchronization of follicular growth, and help in the coordination and planning of your fertility care.
An IVF cycle begins with ovarian stimulation and ultrasound monitoring. A baseline pelvic ultrasound will ensure a healthy starting point before initiating medication for the stimulation and assessment of egg production. You will take hormone injections to recruit multiple eggs from your ovaries. During this time, follicular development and hormone levels will be monitored for appropriate growth for several days. Once your follicles have reached the ideal size, you will be ready for egg retrieval.
A custom medication will be administered 36 hours on-site prior to the retrieval of your eggs.
Approximately two to three office visits will be conducted for ultrasounds and for the assessment of blood hormone levels in order to accurately assess egg maturity and in 7-10 days you will be ready for egg collection. Embryon provides daily support onsite for patients uncomfortable self-injecting and for our clients from abroad this support is offered through video calls.
Ultrasound-guided, transvaginal egg retrieval is a procedure in which a long, thin needle is passed through the vaginal wall into the ovary. Our specialist aspirates the follicles from each ovary and the follicular fluid is collected in test tubes, where our embryologist carefully searches for the eggs. The eggs are cleaned, counted, and placed in an incubator. Later that day, the eggs are fertilized with sperm by Intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) or by traditional IVF.
During IVF, your embryos are cultured between 3 days – 6 days in a temperature-controlled incubator. Each day the embryos are evaluated for quality and development. This information is shared with our specialists to help determine the appropriate day for embryo transfer, which is typically performed on day