Literally “fertilization in glass,” IVF comprises several basic steps: the woman is given fertility drugs that stimulate her ovaries to produce a number of mature eggs; at the proper time, the eggs are retrieved by suction through a needle that has been inserted into her ovaries; the eggs are fertilized in a glass Petri dish, or in a test tube, in the laboratory with her partner’s or donor sperm; and subsequently the embryos are transferred into the body.
In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) requires a team of experts, takes several weeks and consists of five basic steps:
1. Ovarian Follicle Development
Women usually grow a single egg in a month. In order to increase the chances of pregnancy occurring, the patient takes medication that can be utilized alone or in combination to induce several follicles to develop.
The IVF team evaluates this data on an ongoing basis for the appropriate timing of the administration of the human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) injection to trigger final stages of ovulation. The hCG injection is usually given about 35 hours before egg retrieval is scheduled.
2. Egg Harvesting – Oocyte Retrieval
The eggs are collected by transvaginal ultrasound-guided oocyte aspiration.
3. In Vitro Fertilization Laboratory
After the oocyte collection procedure, a “baby incubator” which houses a powerful dissecting microscope receives the follicular fluid containing the eggs. This fluid is placed in a special culture medium which consists of several essential chemicals. The eggs remain in the carefully-controlled extracorporeal system for 4-6 hours before the embryologist adds the specially-processed sperm to allow the fertilization process to occur.
After a period of 16-20 hours, the eggs are examined and checked for the first signs of fertilization. After two to three days, if the embryos are growing normally, they are ready for the embryo transfer.
4. Uterine Embryo Transfer
The embryos are placed in a catheter (a tubular instrument) and then the tiny plastic tube is introduced into the uterus through the cervix and the embryo(s) are transferred into the endometrial cavity.
5. Luteal Phase Monitoring & Support
This phase consists of monitoring of blood levels of progesterone, estradiol, and BhCG (pregnancy tests). If there is a positive pregnancy test, close monitoring of the early pregnancy is highly advisable. At Innovative Fertility Center, we continue to perform the blood tests plus the first pregnancy ultrasound for detection of the baby’s heartbeat and evaluation of the number of embryos implanted is usually done between the 4th and 6th week post transfer.
