Infertility – IVF
In vitro fertilization (IVF) is a type of infertility treatment, recommended to couples who are unable to conceive naturally or through medical intervention after even two or three years of trying conception.
Infertility has increased in the past few decades because of hectic schedule, changed lifestyle and dietary habits. Delayed marriage and late attempt to conceive further add on to the problems. In addition, infertility may result because of several other reasons, including blocked Fallopian tubes, problem with the uterus, low sperm count and low quality of egg. These underlying conditions resulting in infertility must be treated to enable the couples to conceive a child successfully.
IVF is a type of assisted reproductive technology (ART) that helps couples conceive a child, no matter whether it is the make partner or a female partner who is infertile. Other types of ART technologies include intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) and intrauterine insemination (IUI).
It is estimated that both the partners are at an equal risk of suffering from infertility. Nearly 40 percent of the infertility cases are due to male infertility, contrary to the popular belief that only females are infertile.
IVF treatment comes into the picture when all other traditional infertility treatment methods, such as use of medications and careful monitoring of the egg have failed. It is one of the several advanced infertility treatment options recommended by a fertility specialist to infertile couples.
During a typical IVF process, the egg recovered from the mother-to-be or a donor mother is cultured and made to fertilize with a sperm in laboratory condition. One of the healthy embryo is placed into the womb of the mother at blastocyst stage, where rest of the development takes place.
The best hospitals for IVF treatment have state-of-the-art laboratories housing incubators and other machines to conduct IVF procedure safely, efficiently and successfully. The top infertility hospitals also house some of the most experiences infertility and IVF specialists who master in the technique of creating embryos through this highly advances technique.
The IVF cost may vary from hospital to hospital. In addition, it depends on whether you visit a doctor personally in his or her clinic or go to a hospital for consultation. The cost of IVF treatment also depends on the number of IVF cycles that you are required to undergo for successful conception and pregnancy.
Procedures of Infertility – IVF
ICSI and Testicular Biopsy
Intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) is a specialized technique used mostly in conjunction with IVF. It is one of the most commonly prescribed male infertility treatment, that is, in cases wherein the woman is unable to conceive because the male partner is infertile.
The need for ICSI is mostly confirmed after conducting a testicular biopsy. During the testicular biopsy procedure, a piece of tissue is recovered from one or both the testicles of both the partner to identify the cause of infertility.
Intrauterine Insemination
Commonly referred to as IUI, intrauterine insemination if a type of infertility treatment used to assist fertilization in the reproductive tract of the female partner. During IUI process, sperms are placed inside the womb of the female. The goal of infertility treatment through IUI is to increase the number of sperms that reach the Fallopian tube to meet the egg.
IVF
In vitro fertilization (IVF) is a common infertility treatment in which the egg is fertilized outside the body of the mother. During a typical IVF process, several eggs are made to meet the sperms from the father or the donor in a laboratory setting. One of the healthy and the most suitable embryos is placed back into the womb of the mother for further growth and development.
IVF and ICSI
Intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) is a type of male infertility treatment in which a healthy sperm is directly injected into the egg for fertilization rather then to let them combine naturally. It is often combined with in vitro fertilization (IVF), in which a suitable egg is injected with the sperm and fertilization follows. The healthy embryo is transferred into the uterus of the mother.
IVF and ICSI with Optical Spindle view
The optical spindle technique is sometimes used in conjunction with ICSI during infertility treatment. This is a highly specialized technology that lets infertility specialists observe the spindle fibres during meiotic division and fertilization. It helps prevent any kind of damage to the DNA at the time of injecting sperms into the egg for fertilization.
IVF/ICSI with donor sperms
In vitro fertilization enables an infertility specialist to prepare a zygote and transfer it to the womb of the mother by fusing a health egg and a sperm in laboratory condition. The sperm used for IVF or ICSI can come from the father (fertile or infertile) or another healthy donor. Sperm donation is also used in case of single women or heterosexual couples who wish to conceive a child through IVF.
IVF with egg donation
For IVF treatment to become successful, it is important to make sure that the quality of the egg and sperm used during the IVF process is not compromised. In case the quality of the egg derived from the mother is not up to the mark or is rendered unfit for IVF procedure, then the egg can be recovered from a donor. The developed zygote is placed inside the womb of the mother or the donor (gestational carrier).
IVF with laser assisted hatching
Laser assisted hatching during IVF is used to improve the success rate of embryo implantation into the uterine wall of the mother. During laser assisted hatching process, a beam of laser is used to hatch the egg from the shell that surrounds it. This outermost shell called zona pellucida is protective in nature. Removing it helps with uterine implantation. This procedure is performed just before transferring the zygote to the womb of the carrier or mother.
