Clomid for IVF
If you have done any research about fertility medications for IVF, you have probably come across
information about a variety of injections that are used for ovarian stimulation. What about using
oral medications? Can they also be used for IVF? The answer is yes. Stay tuned and I will explain
IVF is a numbers game. In order to get to the point where you have a healthy
embryo to transfer into the uterus, most people need to start with a number of eggs.
In a person who ovulates, typically only one egg matures each month. With IVF,
fertility medications are used in an attempt to mature multiple eggs at the same time.
Usually, the fertility medications used for ovarian stimulation are given as injections.
These medications contain hormones such as FSH,
LH, or hCG. These medications work directly in the ovary to mature multiple eggs. Oral
medications such as clomiphene citrate or clomid work indirectly. Clomid acts on the hypothalamus
and pituitary gland to increase the production of LH and FSH which then stimulate the ovaries.
Same hormones, but instead of coming from a syringe, they are produced inside the body.
There are two instances in which your doctor may recommend the use of Clomid for IVF. First,
Clomid can be used for people that are poor responders. What are poor responders? These
are people who don’t produce very many eggs even when they use high doses of fertility
medication injections. In order to try to increase the number of eggs that mature,
your doctor may recommend combining injections and Clomid. This way, you are stimulating the
ovaries in two different ways: directly with the injections and indirectly with the clomid.
Why not just increase the dose of the injections?
That is an option but it is an expensive one. The injections cost a lot more than clomid does.
A second time that Clomid may be used is when a decision is made not to try to get many eggs
to mature but only a few. Some people refer to this as a mini- stimulation IVF protocol.
A mini stimulation protocol is often tried when a person has tried an aggressive medication protocol
but still ended up with very few eggs. Rather than use high doses of expensive medications given as
multiple injections but still end up with very few eggs,
you can instead just use an oral medication. You will still only end up with one or a few eggs
but it will have been much easier with less injections and much less expensive.
One important concept to understand with Clomid IVF cycles. The eggs that
you get are not of any better quality than eggs that are matured using injections.
But they are not any lower quality either. Beware of anybody who tells you otherwise.
Are there any downsides to using Clomid for IVF? Yes. There are two possible problems that you
need to be aware of. When using a medication like clomid, it is possible that the lining will not
grow as thick as it does with injections so it may not be the best option if your plan is to have a
fresh embryo transfer. Freezing your embryos for a later frozen embryo transfer makes more sense.
Second, using clomid for maturing eggs might result in premature ovulation which would
mean that the egg retrieval would need to be cancelled. This can happen when using
injections also but when injections are used to stimulate the ovaries,
a second medication can be given to prevent premature ovulation. These medications,
which are known as GnRH antagonists, work by blocking the pituitary. Since clomid
relies on the pituitary to produce the hormones needed to stimulate the ovary,
these ovulation blockers can’t be used unless some injections of fertility medications are also used.
Our InfertilityTV bottom line is this. Although you don't hear about it much. Clomid can be used
for IVF cycles and in certain situations have some advantages over using injections alone