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In vitro fertilization (IVF) is a technique that seeks to bring eggs and sperm together in the laboratory setting so that these may form embryos that can be transferred to the mother's uterus. Eggs can be fertilized by conventional IVF or through a process known as intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI).
WHAT DOES IT INVOLVE ?
1. Ovarian stimulation
2. Egg retrieval
3. Fertilization
4. Embryo transfer
5. Embryo vitrification
WHEN IS IT RECOMMENDED ?
With your partner's sperm
- For women with moderate or severe endometriosis
- Failure of artificial insemination
- In women with blocked fallopian tubes or adhesions
- Moderate-to-severe abnormalities in a male partner
- Egg donation techniques
With sperm from a donor
- Single mother-to-be or two same-sex parents
- Repeated failure of insemination with sperm from a male partner
- Severe abnormalities in a male partner
- Repeated implantation failure
HOW EFFECTIVE IS IT ?
The rate of pregnancy obtained, which on average is over 50% per cycle, is largely dependent on the woman's age and the number of embryos transferred.
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Artificial Insemination consists of placing a select sample of sperm previously treated in the laboratory to optimize viability inside the woman's uterus to increase the chances of successful fertilization. To increase the possibilities of impregnation, the ovaries are treated with hormones and ovulation is monitored to pinpoint the best moment for insemination.
WHAT DOES IT INVOLVE ?
1. Ovarian stimulation
2. Insemination
WHEN IS IT RECOMMENDED ?
With your partner's sperm
- Mild male-factor infertility.
- Cervical-factor fertility and abnormalities in the cervix.
- Couples with unexplained infertility.
- Couples in which the mother-to-be has ovulatory dysfunction.
- Vaginismus.
- Erectile dysfunction.
With sperm from a donor
- Poor sperm quality or low sperm count.
- Single mothers-to-be or same-sex parents.
HOW EFFECTIVE IS IT ?
Artificial Insemination has a success rate that sometimes tops 30%, though this rate varies based on the woman's age and the reason the procedure is being performed.
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The egg-donation program is an assisted reproductive technique in which a female donor supplies a female gamete (oocyte) to be implanted in a woman who wishes to give birth.
Anonymous women who meet a series of requirements (e.g., age, state of health) give their eggs over so that other women who have difficulty conceiving may have a chance at motherhood.
WHEN IS IT RECOMMENDED ?
Ovarian failure: inability to produce eggs.
Poor response to assisted reproductive treatments.
Repeated IVF failure: In these cases, the ovaries respond appropriately, producing more than three mature oocytes, but no successful pregnancy is attained despite a sufficient number of IVF cycles (normally 3 or 4).
Advanced age.
Serious genetic abnormalities that may affect a mother's offspring.
Repeated miscarriages.
HOW EFFECTIVE IS IT ?
Egg donation normally has a higher success rate than other assisted reproductive techniques.
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This technique makes it possible to preserve gametes (oocytes and sperm) so that they maintain their biological capacity and viability, thus allowing women to postpone pregnancy with a reasonable level of guarantee..
WHAT DOES IT INVOLVE?
Fertility preservation techniques available through Quirónsalud:
Egg vitrification(link a apartado de vitrificación)
Semen cryopreservation
WHEN IS IT RECOMMENDED ?
For patients who are at risk of loss of ovarian function.
In oncology patients (men and women) who must receive radiation or chemotherapy.
For women who wish to postpone motherhood.
In young patients who have a weak response to ovarian stimulation, vitrification makes it possible to produce an ample number of eggs so that an embryo can be transferred at a later time.
HOW EFFECTIVE IS IT ?
This technique has a good success rate for certain types of women when a sufficient number of eggs is obtained, among other factors.
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This creates the possibility to safely preserve female gametes and embryos for a prolonged period of time. Thanks to this technique, patients may have children after receiving cancer treatment or postpone parenthood for any reason.
WHAT DOES IT INVOLVE?
Vitrification is a process by which eggs are stored at very low temperature through a process that prevents ice-crystal formation by causing an extreme and rapid rise in the egg's viscosity.
The eggs are then protected and immersed in liquid nitrogen at a temperature of -196°C.
The technique is simple and produces good outcomes. It can be used to store both eggs and human embryos, which is why it has many applications.
Egg extraction is done according to the same methods used for IVF treatment: ovary stimulation and egg extraction. Afterward, rather than fertilizing the eggs, they are vitrified and stored
WHEN IS IT RECOMMENDED ?
To preserve surplus embryos after an IVF-ICSI cycle.
For women who are about to undergo cancer treatment and wish to preserve their ability to have children.
When a woman wishes to postpone motherhood.
For women with a low ovarian reserve.
In patients for whom freezing an embryo creates an ethical dilemma.
In patients who, after having IVF treatment, produce a high number of eggs and for ethical reasons are opposed to freezing them.
HOW EFFECTIVE IS IT ?
When the eggs come from a young woman (35 years or younger), storage is a fantastic option, as more than 90% of the oocytes survive the process
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This is a sperm-preparation technique designed to select sperm that are not damaged or programmed to die (apoptic sperm cells) so that this sperm can be used in assisted reproductive techniques, thus increasing potential for fertilization
WHAT DOES IT INVOLVE?
MACS makes it possible to immunomagnetically select sperm that has intact DNA. Healthy sperm is separated from sperm that is dead or has fragmented DNA.
WHEN IS IT RECOMMENDED ?
When it is suspected that DNA fragmentation in sperm is substantially linked to poor outcomes reached with prior assisted reproductive techniques.
HOW EFFECTIVE IS IT ?
MACS, which separates healthy sperm from damaged sperm, has been shown in some studies to increase the success rate by up to 10-15%.
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This diagnostic tool enables us to study the embryo for a particular condition before it is transferred to the uterus. This prevents certain inherited genetic disorders or abnormalities that may compromise embryo viability from being passed on.
WHAT DOES IT INVOLVE?
To carry out a PGD, embryos must first be formed in the laboratory, meaning the mother-to-be must have an assisted reproductive technique (IVF or ICS) performed.
The study is done on one cell from this embryo. A hole is made in the outer layer of an embryo 3 days after fertilization (when it has 6-8 cells).
One cell (blastomere) is removed through this opening to determine whether it is normal or abnormal. The embryos found to be appropriate are selected for transfer.
WHEN IS IT RECOMMENDED ?
Study types:
Aneuploidy screening
Chromosomal rearrangement
Sex selection
Monogenetical disorders
HOW EFFECTIVE IS IT ?
The PGD program's overall success rate per transfer is 20-30%, although these percentages vary based on what motivated the test.
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This advanced incubation system uses sophisticated imaging procedures that allow us to see how embryos fertilized in the IVF lab progress—from the very moment of fertilization until they are transferred to the uterus—without having to remove the embryos from the incubator to check them.
WHAT DOES IT INVOLVE?
This sophisticated laboratory equipment brings together an incubator, microscope, and camera.
We feature the most advanced time-lapse systems available, making it possible to obtain images of embryos at regular intervals throughout their development, which is to say, from the moment of fertilization until embryo transfer, thus creating a video from the "beginning of life."
WHEN IS IT RECOMMENDED ?
For all types of patients who undergo an assisted reproductive treatment.
HOW EFFECTIVE IS IT ?
This technology can help increase the chances of achieving pregnancy, as it avoids handling of the embryo outside of the incubator.