Proven Tips from the Experts
If there is one question that we hear more than any other, its “What can we do to maximize the chance for 1st Time IVF Success?” Although nobody can guarantee that you will be successful after IVF treatment, there are several options that can help sway the odds in your favor. If you prefer to watch videos instead… check out our YouTube Playlist
Does ICSI improve 1st Time IVF Success
There are two methods that have been used to fertilize eggs during IVF. The older method, known as “standard insemination” involved placing sperm near to but outside of the egg. The newer method, ICSI, involves injecting sperm directly into the egg.
Standard insemination is easier and less expensive, but has a higher chance for fertilization failure. In other words, sperm is added but doe not result in an embryo being formed. Numerous studies have shown that with standard insemination, the chance for fertilization failure is around 5-15%. Couples who have more severe problems such as low sperm counts or movement will have an even higher rate of fertilization failure.
Therefore, at IVF1, our recommendation to increase the chance for 1st time IVF success is to use ICSI for fertilization EVEN IF there are no known sperm problems.
Does blastocyst transfer improve the chances for 1st time IVF Success?
Once fertilized, not all embryos will grow and develop. some embryos will degenerate, some embryos will develop for a few days and then stop. In IVF, there are different choices that can be made about how long to observe an embryo before deciding to transfer it. Commonly, IVF programs will choose embryos based on 3 days of development (cleavage stage) or 5-7 days (blastocyst transfer.
Watching the embryo for a longer period of time will help identify the embryos which are the healthiest and therefore the ones that are most likely to result in pregnancy. The rule of thumb here is “watching longer is better”. Nothing is more frustrating than placing a Day 3 embryo in the uterus and then wondering whether it continued to develop normally or not. Embryos that don’t become blastocysts in the lab would not have become blastocysts in your body. Identify the best embryos BEFORE transfer.
Does PGS (embryo testing) increase the odds for First Time IVF Success?
Some embryos may grow normally and reach the blastocyst stage but still not be good, healthy embryos that are capable of producing a viable pregnancy. Many embryos have chromosome abnormalities. The most common type of chromosome abnormalities are called aneuploidies. This is when an embryo has too many or too few chromosomes.
The older a woman gets when she creates an embryo, the higher chance for the embryos to have chromosome abnormalities. Since the early 1990s, we have had technology to identify embryos with chromosome abnormalities. Over the years since, the technology has improved. Today, using techniques such as Next Generation Sequencing, embryos testing has become very accurate and very helpful.
Therefore, if you are an woman who is 37 year or older, we would strongly recommend embryo testing. Many studies have proven that this will improved your chances for 1st time IVF success.
