Frozen Embryo Transfer or FET is an extremely effective method to conceive a pregnancy. Recent studies have proved that there is a increased chance for pregnancy when the embryos, which get used are frozen and get placed inside the uterus at a time right after the ovaries are stimulated. Still, certain issues can arise with the transfer of frozen embryo, such as:

A Thin Lining of the Uterus
Research has shown that there are not many women who get pregnant if the lining in their uterine does not tend to thicken enough. It is not clear exactly why this problem occurs in most women and moreover there is no sure shot treatment to make the lining of the uterine thick. The experts on fertility would try out different methods like increasing the amount of estrogen or change the way how estrogen is given. There are other instances when women might be given supplemental medicines, while for some, the problem will continue to exist.

What Should Be Done In Case The Problem Persists?

In case the problem continues for some women, then there are certain approaches which experts might look to adopt. The first one is to cancel the transfer of embryo and try once again at any later stage, that too with a different treatment method.
The second option which they could think of is to go ahead with the transfer, wherein they might feel that a thin lining does not necessarily mean that it is impossible for a woman to get pregnant but definitely the efficiency would be reduced.
One last option is to make use of the opportunity for undergoing additional tests which would help them to assess the ability of the uterus to allow implantation of the embryos.
Unexpected Ovulation
For enabling the embryos to get implanted into uterus, placing them very precisely and at the appropriate time is important. This is regarded as the window of implantation. The time taken, is based on the time frame since progesterone reaches the lining of the uterine.

Doctor knows the exact time to place the embryos, right from the time he or she instructs a woman to start having progesterone supplements. In case a woman was to ovulate, the production of progesterone would begin earlier than the normal time and would lead to the shift of the window of implantation. As identifying the correct time of ovulation is almost impossible, so that would lead to some sort of uncertainty into the timing.

Due to this reason, there are doctors who would use medication in order to prevent unexpected ovulation from occurring. Generally an injection called Lupron is usually used as medication.

Timing for the Embryo Transfer is Inappropriate
This is a problem related to early ovulation. There are case when the implantation window is shifted, still the timing of the transfer becomes accurate. Recent studies have shown that quite a nominal percentage of women might have a window of implantation, which could be either earlier or later than normal time. A test called the Endometrial Receptivity Array can help determine at what time is the window of implantation open.

Frozen Embryo Transfer - Complications Associated With It!

It is as important for the man as it is for the woman to undergo certain tests before the IVF cycle is started. Fertility is not only an issue for a woman, but it also might be for the man in question. There are certain tests that need to be conducted on men before they can gear up for IVF:

1. Semen Analysis: One of the most important tests for male infertility is semen analysis. Sometimes, a man may be completely healthy, but his sperm production could be of poor quality. Semen analysis is done to provide an accurate evaluation of sperm number, the ability to move (motility), size and shape (morphology), as well as the consistency and volume of the sample collected.

2. Binding Test: Sometimes agglutination occurs where the sperms might stick to each other by their heads or tails. Sperm antibodies might cause this problem. The IVF treatment's success might be compromised if this happens. A simple binding test is done to determine this.

3. Trial Wash: This is also known as sperm wash. It is mostly done to remove chemicals from the sperm. Not doing a sperm wash might end up affecting the later stages of the IVF treatment. In this process, the misshapen and immotile sperm is separated so a clean sample of motile and healthy sperm can be collected.

4. TUNEL Assay: Since sperms build up about half of a child's genetic makeup, a TUNEL Assay or 'sperm DNA test' is required. This test is done to measure the sperm population that have fragmented DNA. Negative impacts on genetics can hamper the success of the fertility treatment.

TUNEL Assay is usually recommended to men with:
a) Leukocytes detected by the sperm analysis
b) Age approaching 50
c) A history of diabetes II type or prostatitis
d) Exposure to chemicals or prolonged heat at workplaces

5. Screening for Infectious Diseases: This test is done for both the partners to check for diseases like AIDS, Hepatitis C, and so on.

Tests Suggested for Men Before IVF

When we talk about infertility attention usually falls on treatment for women. However, infertility can affect men as well. The condition of infertility, can be described as the inability to become pregnant for a period of 1 year despite having unprotected, well-timed sexual intercourse. A low sperm count is one of the primary reasons for infertility in men.

Typically there should be fifteen million sperm per milliliter of semen. Low sperm count refers to the ejaculation of less than a normal amount of sperm in semen. This can also be termed as oligospermia. A complete absence of sperm in semen is known as azoospermia. Low sperm count does not mean that you cannot impregnate your partner but it reduces the chance of a successful conception. Thus, one of the most common ways to treat infertility caused by low sperm count is IVF.

IVF involves harvesting eggs from the woman s uterus and sperm from the male partner and combining them in a laboratory to form a zygote. When IVF is used to treat male infertility, a semen analysis is the first step. This helps determine the patient s sperm count, sperm motility, volume, pH levels, white blood cell levels etc.
The ejaculated semen is then processed so as to separate the sperm cells from the plasma. In this process sperm cells with higher motility are identified and segregated. These cells have a higher chance of fertilizing the egg.
Sperm cells are then injected into the harvested egg. Some techniques may require the injection of 50,000 or more sperm cells while others such as intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) can be effective with a single sperm cell. Once the egg is fertilized, it is allowed to develop for a few days in the laboratory. 
Two or three embryos are then selected to be reintroduced into the woman s uterus with the help of a catheter. The remaining fertilized embryos are preserved in an embryo bank in case the pregnancy is not successful. If these need to be used later, the woman does not have to go through the initial stages of IVF treatment to stimulate the follicles and harvest eggs from the ovaries.
When it comes to IVF, the success rates are very high. However, one of the most common side effects is the birth of twins or triplets. This is because multiple embryos are inserted into the uterus. The number of babies born then depends on the number of embryos that are implanted successfully.

Declining Sperm Count - How IVF Can Help Deal With It?

When a childless couple is not able to conceive, there are myriad paths that the couple may follow to obtain a solution. If IVF does not help the couple, then they can go in for surrogacy. In this method, another lady conceives, carries and gives birth to the baby created by the sperm and eggs of the intended parents. Let us find out more about surrogacy today.

Who can use it?
Surrogacy can be availed by couples who are not able to conceive due to many conclusive reasons including the absence of a womb or the malfunctioning of the same. Also, recurrent miscarriages can be one of the reasons. Further, a couple who has been through IVF or In Vitro Fertilisation implantation failure a number of times can opt for surrogacy.

How does it Work?
Full surrogacy, as it is known, is a process of implanting an embryo in a host body. This embryo is usually created using the egg and the sperm of the parents, or even a fertilised egg that has been donated by a donor, which is then fertilised using the sperm from the intended father. Also, this embryo may be created by using donor eggs and donor sperms. Partial surrogacy is also a method that may be used. When artificial insemination or intrauterine insemination (IUI) is used to create an embryo with the sperm from the intended father and the egg from the surrogate mother, then the process is known as partial surrogacy.

Chance of having a baby with surrogacy
The chance of having a baby with surrogacy depend on various factors. It depends on the ability of the surrogate to get pregnant, as well as her overall health. Before choosing a surrogate, it is important to put her through all the necessary tests to ascertain a good state of health. Further, the age of the egg donor is also a factor in such cases. The success of related procedures like IVF or IUI will also determine the chances of conception through this method. Furthermore, the quality of the elements used by the couple or the intended parents will also make a difference to the process and its efficacy. Yet, the most important factor includes the age of the woman whose egg is being used.

Difference between IVF and Surrogacy
In IVF, the eggs are gathered from the woman and the sperm is taken from her partner before an embryo is created and affixed in the uterus of the intended mother. In surrogacy, it is actually another woman who carries this lab-created embryo through methods like artificial insemination. The sperm may come from the father and the egg may be donated by someone else, in many cases involving full or partial surrogacy.

What is Surrogacy and how it is different from IVF

In vitro fertilisation, commonly known as IVF, is the process of fertilising single or multiple eggs outside the body. This treatment can be performed by either using your own egg and sperm or using donated egg or sperm or sometimes both. The resulting sperms and eggs are evaluated for quality and then one or more of them are positioned properly in the uterus through the cervix. IVF is regarded as one of the most commonly opted treatment plans, and it accounts for more than 99% of assisted reproductive technology processes.

Who are suitable for IVF?
IVF can be helpful for you in case you have some issues with the egg quality or ovulation, fallopian tubes that are blocked in some way or endometriosis. It can also help you to get pregnant if your partner has problems with mortality and sperm count and when you have opted for donor eggs. About 1.5% of babies in the United States are conceived through the IVF process.

How does IVF work?
There are several steps through which IVF process works and the timeline follows the following steps:

    Stimulation for ovary: You will have to take a special kind of fertility drug for 8 to 14 days near the start of your menstruation cycle. This drug aids in the stimulation of your ovaries for developing multiple mature eggs to fertilise instead of a single one. You may also need to take an artificial hormone-like cetrofelix and leuprolide for keeping your body from releasing eggs very early.
    Development of follicle: When you are under all these medications, you will have to visit your doctor s office often for checking the hormone levels as well as ultrasound measurements for the ovaries.
    Getting the trigger shot: Once the follicles are ready, you are likely to receive a trigger shot, which is an injection causing the eggs for maturing fully and becoming capable of being fertilised. Your eggs are ready for being retrieved after about 36 hours of receiving this shot.
    Gathering the eggs: At this stage, you are likely to receive an aesthetic or ultrasound probe that is inserted through the vagina for checking the ovaries and identifying the follicles. Normally, about 8 to 15 eggs are retrieved through the insertion of a thin needle.
    Fertlisation: This is the most vital step, where an embryologist is going to examine the eggs before they are combined with the sperm and incubated overnight. Fertilisation happens at this particular time, but abnormal eggs are not fertilised.

Then the embryos slowly develop and are planted on the basis of your age and clinical condition. When the treatment is working, an embryo is implanted in the uterine walls and starts developing. 

IVF - How Does it Work?

Intrauterine insemination (IUI) and in vitro fertilization (IVF) are two commonly used methods of fertility treatment, which increase a couple s chance of becoming pregnant.

The Procedure

IUI- IUI is a procedure during which processed and concentrated motile sperm are inserted directly into a woman s uterus. This procedure is timed according to a woman s ovulation, and may be performed one to two times in the days immediately following the detection of ovulation. After ovulation a woman s egg is picked up by the fallopian tube and waits there for the sperm. Since the IUI procedure deposits higher concentrations of good quality sperm close to where the egg is waiting, the chances that the egg and sperm will find one another are increased.

IVF- IVF is the most successful method of fertility treatment utilized today to help couples to conceive. The basic components of the IVF process include stimulation of the ovaries to produce multiple eggs at a time, removal of the eggs from the ovary (egg retrieval), fertilization of the eggs in the laboratory, and subsequent placement of the resulting embryos into the uterus (embryo transfer). The chance of pregnancy from IVF depends primarily on the age of the woman, the cause of infertility, and factors related to the quality of the IVF laboratory.

Success Rates

IUI Treatment: There is a marked difference between IVF and IUI pregnancy rates. IUI has a success rate between 5% and 20%, but it can even be as low as 1-2 %, depending on the woman s age and fertility levels. The chances of conceiving through IUI is higher if fertility drugs are administered along with the treatment.

IVF Treatment: IVF has a high success rate   between 20% and 35% and it can even go as high as 40%. This may not seem like a lot, but it is very high, considering that an average young and fertile couple has only a 15-20% chance to conceive in a month. It is important to understand what IVF and IUI success rates mean and the factors that affect it before deciding on a fertility treatment. You can also use any reliable online IUI vs IVF comparison tool to determine your approximate success rates with each of these treatments, depending on your age, lifestyle, and medical history.

You should use online sources of information to understand more about fertility problems, how age affects fertility levels, and whether freezing your eggs is a good option for you. However, discuss all these issues with your doctor to ensure that you have the right information and that you have understood it correctly. Fertility specialists provide you with personalized fertility plans based on your health which is why you should always talk to them before you make any decision.

IVF or IUI - Which One Should You Opt for?

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