Who Needs IVF?

While its original purpose was to treat women with tubal disease, in-vitro fertilization (IVF) is now helping couples prevail over various types of infertility. IVF may be the first-line treatment for some conditions or diagnoses, such as tubal factor. In other cases, IVF may be suggested only if other simpler treatment fails.

This subject is not as simple as the article purports it to be. Yes, in fact, the verdict of infertility is frequently not absolute, but it is significant from the onset to make out the cause of the problem to settle on for whom treatment is crucial, for whom it is desirable and for whom it is probably a matter of convenience or preference.

In general, when it comes to those in need of IVF, people generally fit into one of the two categories:

• Those who have not had the expected success with simple treatments
• Those for whom IVF is their only decision for a biological child

So, who needs IVF?

When is IVF the First Step?

There are some circumstances when IVF is your only option to have a biological child.
Severe tubal disease/ Pelvic Adhesions: If there is significant tubal damage and/or pelvic adhesive disease, IVF is your only option for a biological child. In some situations, fallopian tube issues can be surgically repaired which can avoid the need for IVF. Surgery to repair the tubes is not a good option as it may be very hard to surgically fix the damaged tube(s) and/or there is a high risk of an ectopic pregnancy.  Success rates also vary a great deal and it’s not a good option for most women with the severe tubal disease. 

Severe male infertility: In cases of severe male infertility, IVF with addition of ICSI (Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection) has facilitated couples who would not otherwise be able to conceive, to be able to start a family. If there is any suggestion of a sperm problem, if there has been a prior failure of fertilization or sperm are obtained surgically, ICSI is often recommended. Some of the men suffering from Azoospermia (zero sperm count) can still have a biological child thanks to IVF-ICSI.

Endometriosis: Current scientific data about endometriosis shows that this disease may impact up to 10% of women worldwide during their fertile years. The chance of conceiving each month (known as the monthly fecundity rate) for women having untreated endometriosis is only 2-5%, which can be very disappointing when you compare it to the monthly fecundity rate of the general population, which is 20%. And, mild to moderate forms of endometriosis may be successfully treated with a combination of surgical and medical therapy. For more advanced stages of endometriosis, including the presence of endometriomas, IVF is usually the optimal first-line treatment and the prognosis is surprisingly good.

High risk of genetic disease: If you and/ or your partner are at high risk of passing on a deadly genetic disease, IVF may be your best or only option as IVF has an option of genetic testing on embryos prior to implantation. For couples experiencing recurrent miscarriage due to genetic problems, they would need IVF with PGS or PGD.

Post-cancer fertility treatment: If you have frozen eggs, ovarian tissue, or embryos prior to cancer treatment, you’ll need IVF to conceive with that cryopreserved tissue. Frozen sperm cells can be used by means of an IUI procedure and may not need IVF. Nevertheless, IVF may be a better choice if there is a small amount of preserved sperm cells, because of the increased success rates.

When cryopreserved eggs are used: Cancer is not the only reason why eggs may be frozen. Some women are freezing their eggs when they are young to decrease their risk of age-related infertility or due to other personal reasons. Those who freeze their eggs and want to use them to get pregnant in the future, they will need IVF treatment to conceive.

GIFT - Gyno IVF Centre is a multi-specialty hospital established by Dr. S. Mani & Dr. Anitha Mani located in Athani, Kochi. The hospital was established as a centre for excellence in infertility, high-risk pregnancy, and laparoscopic surgery. In 2007, ART (assisted reproductive techniques) such as IVF & ICSI was introduced with the establishment for state-of-the-art, ART lab. The exceptional teamwork and high patient satisfaction resulted in the rapid growth of GIFT, which makes them the best IVF speciality center in Kerala. The Best IVF hospital in Kerala provides all the advanced treatment and services that are needed for the Fertility Treatment and IVF procedure in Kerala.

Mail Us: giftivfkerala@gmail.com
Book an appointment: giftivf.com/book-appointment.html