Information is the key to success when proceeding with an IVF program. At ZFC we pride ourselves on making sure you know what to expect every step of the way. The following clip outlines the IVF process and gives you an idea of what you will experience as you go through your treatment cycle with us.
Once you have made the decision to proceed with treatment, and your pre-cycle work up is complete you are ready to begin your IVF cycle.
An IVF cycle commences with the stimulation of your ovaries. This is accomplished by using injectable fertility medications. Shortly after you have started your stimulation you will begin coming into our office for monitoring. Monitoring consists of blood tests and ultrasounds. This monitoring allows us to track your follicular development and your hormone response to the fertility medications. The combination of these two factors tells us when you are ready for egg retrieval.
When the follicles reach the optimum size, a single subcutaneous injection of a trigger medication is administered and 36 hours later the egg retrieval is performed. The trigger causes the final maturation of the egg within the follicles. The egg retrieval is performed in our specially equipped operating room. Intravenous anesthesia is administered by an anesthesiologist and you will be asleep and pain free. The eggs are retrieved through ultrasound guidance. A very thin needle is passed through the side wall of the vagina and into one ovary, then the next ovary, where it punctures each follicle individually to remove the egg bearing follicular fluid. The process is continued until all your follicles are emptied, typically the procedure last 20-30 minutes.
The eggs are place in special culture media and then combined with the sperm for fertilization or in most cases ICSI is performed. The resulting embryos are cultured to the desired stage for either implantation or genetic testing based on your treatment choice. You will then be scheduled for your embryo transfer after your body has recovered from the stimulation and the effects of the elevated levels of estrogen. No anesthesia is needed for this procedure. By abdominal ultrasound guidance a special catheter containing your embryos is guided through the cervix into the uterine cavity for optimal placement. This procedure takes approximately 30 minutes.
Ten days post embryo transfer your first pregnancy blood test will be performed.
