IUI, IVF Or ICSI? Know Your Options For An Assisted Pregnancy

If you’ve seen Kareena Kapoor and Akshay Kumar’s movie Good Newwz, you may feel a little more comfortable and informed about IVF as a fertility treatment. Though the light-hearted Bollywood flick was the first to bring this topic into mainstream cinema, it’s vital to know all the intricate details of these procedures. Most Indian couples who get IVF feel uncomfortable acknowledging the assisted pregnancy due to societal pressure. However, the choice to have a baby or not, when and how to have it depends on the couple and there is nothing wrong with any of the choices.

What Is IVF, ICSI & IUI? 1. In-Vitro Fertilisation or IVF

In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) describes a technique where a woman’s eggs and man’s sperm are combined in a special laboratory in order to create an embryo(s). Depending on the diagnosis of the woman, an embryo or embryos are transferred to the woman’s uterus through her cervix to enhance the chances of pregnancy. Here are 8 vital facts to remember when getting an IVF, especially during the pandemic.

2. Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection or ICSI

ICSI is a type of in-vitro fertilization procedure in which a single sperm cell is injected into the cytoplasm of the egg. It is a technique that is used to prepare the gametes in order to obtain the embryos that may be transferred to a maternal uterus, thus encouraging pregnancy. Click here to know more about ICSI treatments.

3. Intrauterine Insemination or IUI

IUI is short for Intrauterine Insemination. It involves inserting your partner’s sperm – or donor sperm – into your uterus at the time you are ovulating, in the hope the egg is fertilised for pregnancy. Click here to learn more about IUI treatments in India.

Who Is A Good Candidate For The Treatment?

1. IVF is designed to overcome issues that prevent sperm from fertilising an egg in the body, such as fallopian tube damage or blockages. It may be advised in some cases of unexplained infertility, or in mild cases of male infertility. Here is everything you need to know about IVF treatments in India. 2. ICSI is a treatment designed to overcome male fertility issues, such as low sperm count or poor sperm mobility, which prevents sperm from fertilising the egg naturally. It’s also used for surgically retrieved sperm, or for men whose sperm has high levels of DNA damage.

What To Expect When You Are Having The Procedures 1. The procedure for IVF

Techniques may differ depending on the clinic, but IVF usually involves the following steps: 1. Suppressing the natural menstrual cycle: The woman receives a drug, usually in the form of a daily injection for about 2 weeks, to suppress their natural menstrual cycle. 2. Superovulation: Fertility drugs containing the fertility hormone, follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) are given to the woman. FSH makes the ovaries produce more eggs than usual. Vaginal ultrasound scans can monitor the process in the ovaries.

2. The process for ICSI

The ICSI procedure is a 5-step process that consists of sperm collection, egg collection, sperm injection, observation and implantation. 1. Sperm Collection: A semen sample is retrieved from the male partner. This can be collected organically or through a surgical testicular process. 2. Egg Collection: Once the semen sample is collected, a selection of mature eggs is collected surgically from the female partner. 3. Sperm Injection: Here, a single sperm cell is injected into a healthy egg using a hollow needle to induce fertilisation.

3. The procedure for IUI

The procedure of IUI is simple. It entails: – Selection and counselling – Ovarian Stimulation – Monitoring of follicular growth and endometrial development – Timing of insemination is planned ~ 36 hours after the trigger injection – Sperm preparation – Insemination