FAQs

IVF is an acronym for in vitro fertilization (‘in vitro’ meaning ‘in glass’) Hence it is also called as test tube pregnancy. It is a non surgical process by which egg cells are fertilised by sperm outside the womb.The process involves hormonally controlling the ovulatory process, removing ova (eggs) from the woman’s ovaries and letting sperm fertilise them in a fluid medium. The fertilised egg (Embryo) is then transferred to the patient’s uterus with the intent to establish a successful pregnancy.

IVF is usually recommended when either one or both of a woman’s Fallopian tubes are blocked or when all other fertility treatments have been unsuccessful. Poor sperm quality and/or quantity, ovulation problems, and sperm-egg interaction problems are some other problems that can prevent couples from having a baby naturally. IVF helps to solve this.

Specific conditions where patient might require IVF include:

• Tubal blockage or failed tubal reversal
• Endometriosis
• Cervical factor
• Pelvic adhesions
• Male factor
• Unexplained infertility/failed conventional therapy
• Genetic testing (PGD) for inheritable diseases
• Genetic testing (PGD) for possible reasons for multiple miscarriages

1/3rd of the infertility issues are contributed by the male partner. Male factors also influence increased rate of miscarriages. Most common causes of male infertility are as follows.

Infertility is gender neutral. It affects the male and the female population. 1/3rd of the infertility issues are contributed by the female partner. In the world 50-80 million suffer from infertility. Most common causes of female infertility are as follows.

• Age
• Endometriosis
• Hormonal issues leading to ovulation problems
• Tubal blockage
• Fibroids
• Lifestyle factors: Being overweight, smoking, drinking alcohol, unhealthy diet
• Unexplained infertility

Women are born with approximately 2 million eggs in their ovaries. Before a girl reaches puberty, about 11,000 eggs die every month. Thus, in her teenage years, a woman has only about 300,000 to 400,000 eggs available. From this point onwards, about 1000 eggs are utilised every month. This has nothing to do with any form of birth control, pregnancy, hormone production, health, lifestyle or nutritional supplements. Eventually, a woman reaches menopause when she has no viable eggs left.

The various steps involved in IVF Procedure are:

Multiple eggs are produced through daily for hormonal injection for 8-12 days The response is then monitored through serial Ultrasounds and Blood tests Eggs are retrieved with the help of a needle under local / general anesthesia Then the collected eggs and women’s husband’s sperms are mixed outside the woman’s body in a culture dish or a test tube which is then placed carefully for fertilization in an incubator Transfer of resulting embryo(s) into the uterus of the woman on D2/D5 A blood test is performed 2 weeks later to check the establishment of pregnancy If the treatment is successful, one or more embryos will be implanted in the uterus and the pregnancy will result, just as it happens in the natural process of conception.

The types of Reproductive techniques available at Matritava IVF centre are:

• IUI
• IVF (Test Tube Baby)
• ICSI
• PESA/TESA/TESE – Surgical Sperm Recovery
• Semen Washing & Sperm Banking
• Donor Insemination
• Egg sharing / Donation and Embryo Freezing
• Surrogacy Services
• Training Courses

Multiple pregnancies after IVF – Incidence of twin pregnancies is 20% and incidence of triplets is 3-4%. Ovarian Hyperstimulation Syndrome (OHSS) is a side-effect that can occur during infertility treatment with ovulation inducing drugs. Symptoms of this syndrome may include ovarian enlargement, accumulation of fluid in the abdomen and gastrointestinal disorders (nausea, vomiting, diarrhea). Severe cases of OHSS are however very rare (1-2% of cases)

NO, these babies are the same- mentally and physically except that they are very very special because it is a very difficult journey for their parents.