In vitro fertilization or IVF treatments have varying timelines because each cycle is personalized to your needs. The basic procedure involves selecting quality sperm cells and stimulating egg production. Fertilization is completed outside the body, and healthy embryos are placed into your uterus for implantation. Here are some of the steps involved in in vitro fertilization treatment and how long they take:
Consultation and Ovarian Stimulation
An IVF cycle begins with an initial consultation with your fertility specialist. The consultation involves a medical history review, symptom diagnosis, and other tests to determine if you’re a good candidate for the procedure. Your doctor then provides pre-cycle guidelines to help you prepare for the procedure. Preparations may involve making lifestyle adjustments, stopping some medications, achieving a specific weight, and treating underlying medical conditions. Once you’re ready for the first cycle, your specialist provides hormone medications to stimulate the ovaries for multiple egg production. This phase also involves blood tests, ultrasounds, and other procedures to track the process. Ovarian stimulation ubsually takes a couple of weeks.
Egg Retrieval and Sperm Selection
If the ovarian stimulation phase is successful, your doctor schedules the egg retrieval appointment. Egg retrieval involves a minor surgery done under sedation. The outpatient procedure takes a few minutes, so you’ll be able to leave in less than an hour. Your specialist also retrieves sperm cells from your partner after a comprehensive semen analysis. The strongest, healthiest sperms and best quality eggs are selected for the fertilization phase. Multiple eggs and sperm are retrieved in case the doctor needs to create more than one embryo and freeze the rest for future use.
Fertilization and Embryo Culture
The selected eggs are fertilized in controlled laboratory settings to support the growth and development of healthy embryos. Fertility specialists monitor the embryo’s development to determine the right time for implantation. Egg fertilization can be done using the traditional method, involving thousands of swimming sperm to penetrate the outer layer of the egg. Specialists also offer intracytoplasmic sperm injection, or ICSI, which involves injecting a single sperm cell into the center of the egg. ICSI is used if the sperm is unable to swim or when the egg’s outer layer is too thick to penetrate.
Pre-Implantation and Embryo Transfer
A healthy embryo from the fertilization process is placed into your uterus in a process that takes a few minutes to complete. You’ll then wait a couple of weeks to take a pregnancy test and determine whether implantation was successful. If pregnancy doesn’t occur, your doctor can prepare you for another cycle. Fertility specialists provide the option to freeze some embryos from the first cycle and use frozen embryo transfer or FUT for future cycles. FUT has unique protocols to prepare you for receiving a frozen embryo. You can also seek pre-implantation genetic testing to address genetic and chromosomal defects the embryo might have.
Get Reliable IVF Treatment
Your treatment’s timeline is personalized according to your unique medical factors and personal circumstances. Treatment steps, like in-depth genetic testing and pre-cycle preparation may extend the timeline. Schedule an appointment with an IVF specialist today to find out more about your treatment options.
Stay Connected With: VistaMedium
