Multiple pregnancies after an IVF treatment were usual, as clinicians transferred two or more embryos in an attempt to maximize the chances of implantation.
“However, multiple pregnancieshave increased risks for the mother and the babies. Multiple pregnancy increase the risk of premature or low weight births, increase the probability of needing a c-section and may require fetal reduction in order for some of the fetuses to survive full-term, which may not be an easy decision for couples to make.” Says Dr. Rajni Khajuria, Lab Director, Igenomix India.
The development of the IVF techniques and recent studies demonstrate no statistical difference in pregnancy achieved by Single Embryo Transfer and a reduction in multiple gestations.
After egg and sperm are used to produce embryos in the IVF clinic, one may have more than one embryo to transfer or cryopreserve. Rather than banking on a fresh embryo transfer with no diagnostic tests, many patients now prefer to use preimplantation genetic screening (PGS) to decide on their best embryo.
PGS is a genetic screening of the embryo produced during IVF treatment and can help you have a healthy baby. The PGS test is performed on the embryo before it is transferred. It allows the identification and transfer of embryos free from aneuploidies to the mother. Furthermore, it significantly increases pregnancy rates per transfer. Moreover it reduces the time needed to achieve pregnancy. PGS also facilitates prospective parents to transfer a single embryo without lowering the chances for conception.
The improvements to ovarian stimulation protocols, cryopreservation techniques and luteal phase support have also enhanced and support for single embryo transfer. Cryopreservation of embryos for replacement in a later cycle allows sufficient time for genetic tests to be performed and for the uterus to recover from the negative effects of ovarian stimulation, further improving success rates.
“PGS with an added advantage of MitoScore can enable ongoing pregnancy rate of about 70-80% in a single transfer.” Further adds Dr. Rajni.
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