IVF is a very efficient treatment for infertility. This means that the percentage of people who
become pregnant with IVF on a given try is generally going to be higher than with other
treatments. During IVF, injections of fertility medications are used to mature multiple eggs
which are then extracted from the ovaries and fertilized outside of the body. Did you
know that these same medications can be used to cause ovulation of multiple eggs
and pregnancy can then be attempted with either intercourse or IUI? Is
this something you should consider before moving to IVF? Stay tuned.
The process of getting multiple eggs to develop is sometimes referred to as
superovulation. Oral medications such as clomid can be used for superovulation.
Many couples will try clomid before trying IVF. Using injections for superovulation produces
higher pregnancy rates than clomid. I talk about that in this video.
Not all people will be good candidates for superovulation with fertility injections.
In order for this treatment to have a chance to work, the person attempting pregnancy
must have at least one fallopian tube that is open. The partner providing sperm must also have
an adequate number of moving sperm that are capable of fertilizing an egg on their own.
Superovulation with fertility injections and IVF have many similarities. They both use the same
kinds of medications - fertility injections. They are both monitored in the same way. While
the injections are being given in the evenings, monitoring using blood tests and transvaginal
ultrasounds are performed every few days. The length of time that the fertility injections
are given is also similar -- usually between eight and 13 days of injections are needed.
What are the advantages of using injections for superovulation compared to IVF? Well,
first of all, it is a lot less expensive. There are two reasons for this. First, the dose of
medications used for superovulation is usually a lot lower than the dose for IVF so you save on
medication cost. Second, the most expensive part of IVF is the egg retrieval and everything that
is done outside of your body in the IVF lab. With superovulation, you don't have any of those costs.
Another advantage of superovulation is that it is less invasive. Pregnancy is attempted with
intercourse or IUI. IVF requires an egg retrieval. During an egg retrieval, a long needle is passed
through the vagina into the ovaries. If that sounds like it could be painful, you’re right!
This can be very uncomfortable. Egg retrievals are therefore usually done under anesthesia.
What are some disadvantages of superovulation with fertility injections? The biggest disadvantage
is that the chance for pregnancy will not be as high as it will be for IVF.
Second, and maybe more importantly, superovulation carries a very high risk for multiple pregnancy.
Check out these numbers. If a person becomes pregnant WITHOUT the use of fertility medications,
a little less than 0.5% of those pregnancies will be twins. About one in 10 000 might be triplets.
About one in 700 000 are quadruplets. If you conceive while using fertility injections for
superovulation, the risk for having a twin is 60 times higher! Around one in three pregnancies
will be twin pregnancies. The risk for triplets is 500 times higher. About one in every twenty
pregnancies will be triplets. The risk for quadruplets is thousands of times higher.
Younger people using fertility injections will usually see a higher chance for pregnancy
but they will also have a higher rate of multiple pregnancy.
Another complication of using fertility injections is over stimulating the ovaries.
This can result in a serious condition called ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome or OHSS. This
can occur with either IVF or superovulation but it is much less common with IVF.
Our Infertility TV Bottom Line is this. Superovulation with fertility injections
can be an option for some couples with infertility. Fertility injections have
some advantages compared to IVF but there are some definite risks especially if you are younger. If
you are concerned about these risks, then moving straight to IVF may be a better option for you