What are the complications of IVF?
Multiple pregnancies: Twenty five percent of the conceived cases after fertility treatment may result in twin pregnancy or very rarely result in triplets (5% of cases)
- Ovarian Hyperstimulation Syndrome: This is a type of hyper-reaction of the ovaries from the fertility medications leading to abdominal distension, vomiting and sometimes diarrhea. Abdominal distension results from accumulation of fluid in the abdomen which happens in 0.5-1% of cases and it is usually aspirated by a special needle with no anesthesia needed.
- Vaginal bleeding (1:1000).
What are the things that I could do?
- All types of food are allowed.
- Tea & coffee are safe.
- Moderate exercise can be done before the procedure but not after to avoid ovarian torsion.
- A lot of hydration is recommended.
- Shower & baths are allowed at and after any stage of treatment.
- Climbing stairs for any number of floors is safe.
- Car driving is safe.
- Paracetamol is allowed as a pain killer at any stage of treatment.
What is the cause of poor response to ovarian stimulation?
The two main causes are either the age factor (decreased ovarian reserve) or poor receptors of the ovary.
Can IVF or ICSI procedures result in abnormal babies?
There is no solid data or study which proves that IVF or ICSI can produce an abnormal baby.
How to make sure that the samples are not mixes up?
- The wife before entering the operating room wears a band with her and her husbands full name and date of birth which is checked by both the anesthetist and the head nurse.
- Both (eggs and sperms) do have the full name and date of birth of husband and wife + patient ID number + color code.
- Before the embryologists do inject the sperm or mix it with the eggs, a second embryologists along with the lab technician, both of them do sign as a witness on the lab sheet confirming the right match.
What are the things that I should Avoid?
- Driving after egg retrieval because of the effect of the sedation (anesthesia).
- Smoking.
- Excessive alcohol.
- Vigorous exercise as it can cause ovarian torsion to the enlarged ovaries after the stimulation.
- Sexual intercourse 5 days before the ovum retrieval until the pregnancy test.
- Any medications before consulting your doctor.
- Bed rest is not recommended at all at any stage of the treatment of after.
What are the advantages of day 5-6 (blastocyst stage) embryo transfer over day 2-3?
Days 5-6 of embryo transfer is better than days 2-3 as this is the natural timing of actual implantation after fertilization of an egg in the fallopian tube in a natural pregnancy because of better embryo quality and endometrial receptivity.
What are the causes of failure?
A- Women’s age due to aged ovae.
B- Embryo quality which is affected by either the sperm or the egg quality.
C- Uterine factors (fibroids, polyps or septum).
D- Laboratory factors and procedures which can affect the quality of the embryos.
E- Immunological rejection of the embryo (natural killer cells).
When can I try another IVF/ICSI cycle after I have failed one?
No studies show that there is need to rest in between trials.
How many trials for IUI and ICSI can I do?
Sunrise Fertility Center does not recommend to go through more than 3 trials with the IUI. Our explanation for that, is that this means there is an fertilization problem. And therefore we do advise our patients to proceed with an IVF or ICSI to overcome the fertilization failure.
No limit of trials is recommended as long as long as:
– The women can produce eggs which are able to be fertilized (weather IVF or ICSI)
– Sperms available in the female fluid or testicular tissue are able to fertilize the egg. (IVF or ICSI)
How Do I Get Started?
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