What is IVF (in vitro fertilization)? Is it right for you?

What is IVF?

In-vitro Fertilization is an advanced assisted reproductive technology. The egg and the sperm are fertilized outside of the body. After a period of allowing the embryo to mature inside a safe incubator, like that provided by an Embryoscope, the fertilized embryo is then transferred to the uterus. The IVF procedure was first done in 1978 and since then has made it possible for more than four million children to be born.

When will you be prescribed to undergo IVF?

1) If you have been unable to conceive after trying actively for over a year

2) If you are over 35 years old and have been able to conceive after trying for 6 months

3) If you have an unexplained infertility

4) If you have been diagnosed with uterine fibroids, polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), shrinking ovarian reserve, or endometriosis.

5) If your male partner has been tested at Semen Analysis Centers and his results show low motility or sperm count.

6) If you have already tried other forms of treatment to no avail

7) If you have not been identified with a diagnosis that can be treated

The process:

Every IVF procedure is unique and tailored to suit the needs of a particular couple. However, it typically comprises five major steps that are performed over the extent of one menstrual cycle.

1) Ovarian stimulation (8-12 days): In addition to a course of medication that would stimulate your ovaries to develop multiple eggs, you will be subject to regular ultrasounds to gauge the extent of maturation of your ovarian follicles. The consistent surveillance is important for avoiding ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome. When the follicles mature, you will be injected with chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) to make the eggs ready for fertilization.

2) Egg retrieval (30 minutes): About one and half days after your hCG injection, your eggs will be retrieved from your ovarian follicles while you are under anesthesia and your partners sperm will be collected to fertilize the eggs.

3)IVF (4-9 days): The fertilization occurs in-vitro or outside the body, in your infertility clinic, in this step. An embryologist requires 18 hours to determine the fertilization. The embryos will incubate for 2 to 5 days, usually.

4) Embryo transfer: This can happen at any time between the third day after the IVF (fresh embryos) and two months after it (in which case your embryo will be frozen). Your embryos will be transferred to your uterus with a narrow catheter.

5) Embryo implantation (6-10 days): This is a crucial time after embryo transfer when you will have to continue with fertility medications. At the end of this period your doctor will conduct a blood test to determine if the embryo has been planted in the lining of your uterus. If that is indeed the case then it means that your in-vitro fertilization was a success.

What IVF does to your body:

1) It reworks you natural physical order. IVF overwrites the natural instinct of our bodies to avoid having many babies at once, to increase chances of conceiving for the infertile.

2) It medically stimulates your ovaries and induces it to produce multiple eggs. This process is known as controlled ovarian stimulation.

3) It postponed natural ovulation and stems its spontaneity because then the eggs will be lost, negating the in-vitro fertilization cycle.

4) It prepares your uterus for receiving the fertilized embryo and its implantation.