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The dream of having children is practically lived and shared by all human beings. But not everything happens in a natural way or in the way we always dream of happening in our life and some reinforcements of medicine may be necessary, as is the case of in vitro fertilization.
In Vitro fertilization, also named and recognized by medicine with the acronym FIV , is a method of human reproduction that was created to help couples who wish to have children and are unable to do so naturally due to various factors of marital infertility . Even though it is an old technique, it starts to have a greater proportion and to encompass more couples nowadays, becoming more and more a known and increasingly accessible method.
What is IVF?
The in vitro fertilization (IVF) procedure is nothing more than the fertilization of sperm to the woman’s eggs in a totally assisted and laboratory way. After fertilization, it is transferred to the woman’s uterus so that the pregnancy can continue.
Explaining like this seems very simple, but in fact it requires proper treatment, great preparation and the monitoring of a fertility specialist who will ensure that the whole process works more smoothly and within the expected to generate a healthy baby.
How In Vitro Fertilization is Done
The IVF process starts with a medical consultation with a fertilization specialist. Before starting any procedure, it is necessary to carry out evaluative exams to determine the way forward and the couple’s reproductive health conditions.
Tests such as sperm and antimullerian tests are carried out to analyze the conditions and quality of the material collected for the couple’s reproduction. After satisfactory results and the specialist concludes that IVF is really the best way, treatment for ovulation induction is initiated.
The ovulation induction occurs so that the woman obtains healthier eggs and in greater quantity to guarantee the success of the method. Usually this medication is in an injectable form based on hormones , which must be applied to the abdomen area, with a duration of 5 to 10 days.
At the end of the treatment with the injections, the appearance of ovarian follicles will be confirmed, which will soon rupture and become the dominant eggs. At that time, the use of another medication is also indicated, which will now assist in the maturation of these follicles so that they can prepare themselves until the exact day to be removed.
To ensure greater efficiency in the method and that everything happens as expected, between 2 and 12 eggs can be removed , which will be taken immediately to the insemination laboratory.
Parallel to the treatment of ovarian stimulation, the man’s semen is also collected and analyzed. The best sperm and the greatest mobility for the in vitro fertilization process will be chosen .
With the mature eggs chosen and the sperm already prepared, in vitro fertilization is carried out inside the laboratory. After 5 days of fertilization, embryos are analyzed and those considered most prepared to continue are transferred to the uterus.
IMPORTANT: Usually, a maximum of 3 embryos are separated per trial. So it is very natural to see twin children in couples who have opted for IVF as a treatment.
After the uterine insemination process, the woman will still maintain the progesterone-based drug treatment, which will help the endometrium to be strengthened and ensure the healthy development of pregnancy.
After the fertilization process, it is necessary to wait around 12 days to confirm that the IVF process was satisfactory. Through a beta HCG exam it is possible to check if the pregnancy worked.
What if Fertilization Doesn’t Work?
Unfortunately, fertilization is not a possibility that cannot be ruled out. However, during the whole process there is a preparation thinking about this hypothesis and therefore, when the embryos are separated for implantation, the others that have not been used are frozen, in case a new attempt is necessary.
There is no limit on the number of attempts of in vitro fertilization, as they can be made as many as necessary and the couple has resources. But it is recommended that after a few attempts, the woman’s body has a rest, mainly due to the amount of hormones it receives in the preparation.
Chances of In Vitro Fertilization Give Right
Every couple considered healthy and fit by the fertilization specialist has a chance of getting pregnant with this method, especially on the first attempt . Women aged between 30 and 35 are considered the most likely to succeed in the first attempt at IVF.
Women over the age of 40, however, need more detailed follow-up as the chances are reduced slightly, dropping to 25% in the possibilities they had previously, due to their low ovarian reserve.
Freezing Ova for In Vitro Fertilization in the Future
In order for in vitro fertilization to be carried out successfully, several factors are evaluated in the couple’s reproductive conditions, as we have already mentioned above. The age of the woman acts directly on the quality of the eggs and that is why, over the years, the chances are going to reduce more and more of the in vitro fertilization to work.
In the case of women who wish to become a mother in the future, because they have other projects in mind for the moment or even because they are experiencing a health problem that they know will make them infertile, there is an option to ensure that this dream stays alive , the freezing of eggs.
The recommended age for freezing eggs is up to 35 years of age , where their production and quality are still considered good. After that age, the ovarian reserve begins to fall, reducing production quality.
Egg freezing has no expiration date, so it can be maintained for an indefinite period, until the woman is really ready to get pregnant and start IVF or artificial insemination treatment.
However, in 2013 the Federal Council of Medicine determined that in vitro fertilization can only be performed on women up to 50 years of age , considering that it is the age of greatest risk for babies with malformation, pregnancy losses and complications during pregnancy .
The entire egg freezing process begins 10 days prior to collection. As in the process of in vitro fertilization, the woman is subjected to drug treatment of ovulatory stimulators, which when confirmed that they are ripe, can be collected for freezing.
The ovarian collection or puncture as it is named is performed in a specialized clinic and prepared for surgical procedures, since the egg collection stage will require anesthesia with a durability of around 2 hours.
This collection is performed vaginally and accompanied with the help of an ultrasound examination that will guide the location of the ovarian follicles . The follicles will be removed one by one and will be sent to the laboratory for analysis, which will indicate freezing conditions at maturity.
IMPORTANT: The procedure is completely painless due to anesthesia, but may present mild discomfort or cramping afterwards, during recovery.
Semen Freezing
Just as women can ensure that their dreams come true in the future, men can also, through the semen bank . It is also an option for women who wish to do independent production or even that the partner cannot be the donor of semen due to infertility problems.
After making the decision to freeze semen, the specialist will request serological evaluation tests and soon afterwards will be directed to the collection. The man’s preparation for freezing the semen is that for the day of the collection he must be in sexual abstinence from at least 3 days up to 7 days . It is recommended that 3 semen collections occur to ensure the procedure.
The semen will be kept in liquid nitrogen, at a temperature of -196 C in specialized clinics. They can be kept in that state for up to 40 years.
Does In Vitro Fertilization Offer Risks?
Like any medical procedure, there are risks. But over the years and the evolution of medicine and studies related to human reproduction, these risks have been reduced more and more.
In the past, the quality of embryos was analyzed before fertilization was carried out, but not enough to be sure of possible health problems he would have. Currently, a new innovative technique is used, where a biopsy is performed on the embryo seeking confirmation before carrying out the transfer to the uterus.
That is why it is recommended that the in vitro fertilization procedure be performed only by specialized, recognized and capable clinics and with professionals fully trained to offer totally safe treatment.
Before carrying out any procedure, confirm that the doctor has CRM and is a specialist in human reproduction and is part of the Brazilian society of assisted reproduction, human reproduction and the Society of gynecology of the State.
My name is Dr. Alexis Hart I am 38 years old, I am the mother of 3 beautiful children! Different ages, different phases 16 years, 12 years and 7 years. In love with motherhood since always, I found it difficult to make my dreams come true, and also some more after I was already a mother.
Since I imagined myself as a mother, in my thoughts everything seemed to be much easier and simpler than it really was, I expected to get pregnant as soon as I wished, but it wasn’t that simple. The first pregnancy was smooth, but my daughter’s birth was very troubled. Joana was born in 2002 with a weight of 2930kg and 45cm, from a very peaceful cesarean delivery but she had already been born with congenital pneumonia due to a broken bag not treated with antibiotics even before delivery.
