How to Improve your Chances of IVF Success After Failed Attempts?
- Common Factors Responsible for Failed IVF cycles
- What investigations do you need after a failed IVF cycle?
- IVF Failed—How to move forward?
- What are your Chances after IVF failure & How to Boost them?
- Solutions to IVF failures at MotherToBe IVF Clinic in Hyderabad!
Failed Attempt!
It is the IVF outcome that you do not ever want to think about!
You have worked so hard, invested a lot of time, paid so much, and endured considerable physical and emotional trauma, all hoping for one result-A successful conception-a baby!
Failed IVF could be devastating for couples who are yearning for parenthood. While success rates for IVF treatment are at their highest, and ART technology and care are only getting better and better. But still, there are those odd occurrences where IVF fails. Regardless of whether you know or not the reasons, it hurts deeply.
Here is the fact-IVF is not a Guarantee!
It is a very fact that IVF is a service to assist you in achieving what you want. No matter what and where you are seeking fertility treatment though, you should be given a complete picture of the odds that you will walk away pregnant.
Fortunately, Endometrial Receptivity Analysis otherwise called ERA Testing, Preimplantation Genetic Screening (PGS), and immunologic tests, now exist and can improve success rates. But other factors such as age, egg quality could work against even the best technologies.
Here is some useful information regarding what’s the next step after an IVF failure and what fertility doctors can do to improve your chances of getting pregnant and also know about some solutions from MotherToBe. Keep reading to know more:
Let’s discuss what went wrong:
Sometimes it is a matter of just trying again. But especially in cases of more complex treatments such as IVF, identifying where things fell through may help improve your odds of success next time.
Common Factors Responsible for Failed IVF cycles
IVF failure can be a vague term, that can refer to multiple situations:
- IVF cycle cancellation, owing to a low number of follicles produced at the time of egg retrieval. And also when the patient develops medical complications such as OHSS(ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome).
- The retrieved eggs are inadequate or not of high/good quality.
- The retrieved egg doesn’t fertilize well enough.
- No embryo present during the transfer into the uterus.
- Implantation Failure-Transferred embryos might not implant due to various reasons.
- Due to various infections such as TB, Gonorrhea, etc.
- Due to male factor infertility-( like less motility, high DNA fragmentation rate, etc.)
- IVF failure due to Inadequate Ovarian Stimulation.
- Inadequate Endometrium thickness and receptivity.
- Polycystic ovaries
What investigations do you need after a failed IVF cycle?
Potential causes of IVF implantation failures should be investigated in order to plan the next suitable treatment options There are various tests and screening available that can aid pinpoint what are the issues may be, here are some test options below:
Uterine Evaluation or Hysterosalpingogram (HSG)
Hysterosalpingogram is an evaluation of the uterus which is done before the IVF cycle. This is a test of choice where it adequately looks at the uterus and the fallopian tubes. A hydrosalpinx (a condition where the fallopian tube is filled with fluid and blocked) can reduce implantation by 50%, so you and the IVF specialists do need to know the tubal status while going for IVF.
Sperm DNA Fragmentation Test
Another test that has gained traction is the sperm DNA fragmentation assay, which examines the integrity of DNA in the sperm. Some study data suggest that if the assay value is abnormally high, it can lower the fertilization rates, implantation rates, and even higher miscarriage rates might result.
Men with normal semen analysis results can do have abnormal DNA fragmentation results. This test is used to better understand male fertility and gaining more interest among fertility specialists. As its key role is still not clearly defined, and further data is needed to determine the usage of these tests.
ERA-Endometrial Receptivity Assay Testing
Since 1990, a series of tests have been performed on the endometrium/uterine cavity cells to determine if there are any certain chemical/genetic markers that predict the receptivity of the endometrium to implantation. The ERA is one of these tests, in which a biopsy of the endometrium is performed and hundreds of genes are investigated to predict the receptivity of the uterus to implantation. ERA could also provide clues regarding the implantation window and the ideal time to transfer the embryos.
PGT-A
Formerly popular as PGS-Preimplantation Genetic Screening, for most couples, embryos created in an IVF cycle may have an abnormal number of chromosomes. Transfer of such abnormal embryos fails to conceive or even results in increased rates of miscarriage and abnormal births.
PGT-A is one of the genetic screening procedures in which cells are removed from a developing embryo and then tested its chromosome content. Embryos that have a normal number of chromosomes are selected for transfer, this procedure helps results in improved pregnancy rates and reduced miscarriage rates.
PGT-A improves the ability to achieve conception with a single embryo which can reduce the risks related to multiple pregnancies faced by mothers & babies.
Some immunologic tests can also be done to detect various immunologic abnormalities and this can help in improving clinical outcomes for patients with repeated implantation failures.
IVF Failed—How to move forward?
At this stage, you have two considerations, the first one is you need to process the emotional distress and response to the loss and then the next medical choices that need to be taken regarding the next steps in your fertility journey.
Take a break—
It is essential to take a well-deserved break after an IVF loss. The entire process up to this has taken a huge physical and emotional toll on your body. Take a break from everything, so that you can nurture yourself. It is also a great idea to seek support from a specialized counselor. At MotherToBe, we have experienced professionals, expertise staff to provide comprehensive care and emotional support to you and your partner to overcome your grief.
Talk to the Fertility Specialist
After allocating some time to express your emotional anguish, it is necessary to consult your fertility specialist, where the physician will review complete details about your IVF cycle beginning with the results of ovarian stimulation, or any egg quality/quantity issues, or even embryo development or transfer issues.
Proceed with a more informed treatment plan
After evaluating the previous cycle results the fertility specialist suggests the next course of treatment plan where you can discuss new pieces of information that has been learned from the previous failed IVF cycle with a more informed treatment plan for the next IVF cycle.
What are your Chances after IVF failure & How to Boost them?
Couples with failed IVF cycles often ask this very reasonable question. And women have good chances of a second IVF pregnancy where cumulative live birth rates range between 51%-70%.
However, the chances for happening a successful IVF depends on various factors. Including:
- Age of the female partner
- Egg quality & quantity
- Sperm quality
- Quality of the ovarian stimulation
- number of quality eggs retrieved
- egg retrieval & embryo transfer skills
- uterine issues
- embryo developmental rates
- genetic & chromosomal competence of the embryos.
In order to maximize your chances for a successful second IVF try, make sure that your fertility doctor has carefully reviewed the above issues.
Conception is achievable even after failed IVF cycles!
Hope in the form of Real Data & Statistics!
The above graph is a CDC report which shows data on IVF success by age and IVF tries whether it a 1st, 2nd, 3rd, or 4th attempt after previous failed IVF cycles.
At MotherToBe IVF Clinic our Approach is Different!
An unsuccessful IVF (In Vitro Fertilization) cycle could be really frustrating & disheartening. We know this well because most of our patients have had unsuccessful IVF attempts elsewhere before at other fertility centers. At MotherToBe, we specialize in helping patients with consecutive or recurrent IVF failures and varied tough cases of infertility.
Solutions to IVF failures at MotherToBe IVF Clinic in Hyderabad!
Our assurance on this issue derives from the fact that we have a successful track record of treating so many patients in the past few years to conceive, despite their long histories of failed ART treatments. After reviewing the events of previous unsuccessful cycles, some adjustments can be made in the next IVF attempt to make it successful.
- Repeat IVF treatment
- Follows same protocol with some suitable adjustments (medications, Genetic screening like PGD/PGS)
- Adding ICSI to standard IVF (aid in fertilization of the eggs)
- Assisted Hatching to assist with implantation
- Immunotherapy
- Egg donor IVF is recommended in cases of poor egg quality or premature ovarian failure or low ovarian reserves.
If you are one of those patients with failed IVF cycles elsewhere, consider contacting MotherToBe fertility center for a second opinion. book an appointment