IVF is a type of fertility treatment where fertilisation takes place outside the body. It’s suitable for people with a wide range of fertility issues and is one of the most commonly used and successful treatments available for many people. IVF is a common treatment for people who are unable to conceive naturally. Usually in IVF, the woman has medicines (fertility hormones) to stimulate the ovaries to produce several eggs. The eggs are then collected and mixed with sperm in a laboratory.
IVF is carried out when the sperm quality is considered to be ‘normal’ If there are issues with the sperm quality such as low motility or numbers, a procedure called intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) may instead be used – this is where a single sperm is injected into the egg by an embryologist.
If fertilisation is successful, the embryos are allowed to develop for between two and six days. This helps the embryologist to select the strongest embryo, which is then transferred back to the woman’s womb to hopefully continue to a successful birth.
Often several good quality embryos will be created. In these cases, it’s normally best practice to freeze the remaining embryos because putting two embryos back in the womb increases your chance of having twins or triplets, which carries health risks. You can use your frozen embryos later on if your first cycle is unsuccessful or you want to try for another baby.
For around half of couples who are having problems conceiving, the cause of infertility is sperm-related. ICSI is the most common and successful treatment for male infertility.
Who might be recommended to have ICSI ?
* you have a very low sperm count * your sperm are abnormally shaped (poor morphology) or they don’t move normally (poor motility) * you’ve had IVF previously and none, or very few of the eggs fertilized. * you need sperm to be collected surgically from the testicles or epididymis (a narrow tube inside the scrotum where sperm are stored and matured); for example because you have had a vasectomy, or you have a blockage that prevents sperm reaching the ejaculate, caused by disease, injury, or a genetic condition, or because you have an extremely low sperm count. * you’re using frozen sperm in your treatment which isn’t of the highest quality, especially if it was stored because your fertility was under threat, or following a surgical sperm retrieval. * you’re having embryo testing for a genetic condition, and sperm sticking to the outside of the eggs would interfere with the results.
Things To Know About ICSI
* ICSI is an effective treatment for men with infertility. * It’s performed as part of in vitro fertilisation (IVF). * It involves the sperm being injected directly into the egg. * Some men may need their sperm to be surgically extracted first.
