In vitro fertilization (IVF) is a treatment for infertility in which a person's eggs are fertilized by sperm in a laboratory dish. Before undergoing IVF treatment, there are several things to consider: - IVF has some disadvantages, including high costs, potential side effects of injectable fertility medications and invasive procedures used, as well as an increased rate of multiple gestation and pregnancy complications such as preterm birth. Women who are considering IVF should discuss the risks, benefits, and alternatives with their health care provider and partner before treatment begins. - IVF is usually considered by couples who have absent or blocked fallopian tubes, severe male factor infertility, advanced reproductive age, all other causes of infertility if treatment with other therapies is not effective or an inherited genetic disease that they wish to avoid passing on to their child. - Couples may choose to have their embryos tested prior to transfer to find out which of the embryos have the disease or genetic mutation if they are carriers of a disease-specific gene or a known genetic mutation that could be passed on to their children. - Multiple pregnancy remains the highest risk associated with IVF despite improvements in cryopreservation of embryos and age-based guidelines for the number of embryos to transfer. - The IVF procedure consists of several steps that take place over a period of weeks: education about the complex steps involved in IVF, stimulation of the ovaries to produce several ovarian follicles, retrieval of the eggs from the ovaries and obtaining a semen sample, fertilization of the eggs with sperm and growth of the embryos in the laboratory and transfer of one or more embryos into the uterus. Since more than one cycle may be necessary before pregnancy occurs, it is important to consider how long treatment will take. - To choose the right treatment for you, talk with your doctor about benefits and downsides such as how well your doctor thinks it will work, cost (as some treatments cost a lot of money), how long the treatment will take, side effects and downsides of the treatment. It is also important to consider other options for having children, such as adoption.
Lastly choosing the right clinic is very important that encompasses 3 important factors:
A clinic such as CMIVF takes pride in its advancement treatment options and selecting the right specialist who is trained to evaluate an individual’s unique fertility status and recommend the most suitable treatment, personalized for one’s individual needs. In addition, a clinic that includes a counselling therapist to help share the idiosyncratic emotional toil that accompanies IVF is invaluable. Finally asking the clinic for a transparent disclosure of the average success rate of an IVF procedure.
