Increase Your Chances of IVF Success

How to Increase Your Chances of IVF Success

If you are looking to increase your chances of conceiving during IVF, here are 8 tips from 5 different fertility doctors.

• 1. Maintain a healthy weight.

"Maintaining a healthy weight is extremely important in fertility and IVF," says Linnea Goodman, MD, Assistant Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the UNC School of Medicine. "We know that being obese (BMI >35) and underweight (BMI <19) increases time of conception by 2 and 4 times respectively, and negatively effects IVF success rates. Being overweight also makes monitoring the ovaries during IVF more difficult and increases the chance of complications during egg retrievals."

This is best implemented with changes in diet and activity with professional help.

"Working with dietitian, and in some programs enrolling in a cardio metabolic weight loss program can help achieve these goals," says Zaraq Khan, MD, reproductive endocrinologist at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN.

2. Optimize sperm health.

"Use of multivitamins and maintaining optimal body weight, as well using boxers over briefs, could improve sperm quality," says Dr. Khan. "Under appropriate care, men can also be started on medications that can help boost sperm numbers and quality that can have a beneficial impact on IVF outcome. In certain cases, sperm aspirated directly from the testicle over ejaculate could also be beneficial. Involving a male infertility specialist for any form of abnormalities in semen analyses is key."

• 3. Partner with an excellent doctor and embryology laboratory.

"Choosing an excellent reproductive endocrinologist is twofold: in addition to experience and commitment to evidence-based medicine, look for someone with whom you feel comfortable and connected. Your doctor will accompany you on this very emotional journey and it is important for you to feel supported and heard," says Elizabeth Fino, MD, fertility specialist at NYU Langone Fertility Center. "Asking for recommendations from friends and family who know you best can help guide you to a knowledgeable physician with whom you feel comfortable, but also be sure to do your research."

In a world of online reviews, it can be difficult to determine credibility.

"Be careful of online reviews—they are often completed by select patients who had an extreme experience for one reason or another and may not be universally applicable. FertilityIQ offers a unique model which hones in on specific aspects of the experience after vetting patient reviews.

To find an excellent embryology laboratory, look for a long history of exceptional outcomes. One source is the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology which details the clinic's volume and live birth rate."

4. Reduce your stress.

"Basal stress levels can influence natural and assisted conception rates," says Dr. Khan. "Reducing stress troubles during an IVF stimulation cycle can be one of the hardest things to achieve for couples. Several reports suggest improvement of pregnancy outcomes with the use of acupuncture and other stress relieving techniques, like enrolling in mind-body programs, stress reduction, and resilience training workshops."

5. Quit smoking

"Smoking can drastically decrease chance of success while doing IVF because it effects egg and sperm quality," says Dr. Khan.

But you don't have to do it on your own.

"Quitting smoking is not an easy task and often requires a great deal of personal as well as professional support. Try to involve your friends and family to help encourage you in the process. For smoking cessation, structured programs and/or pharmacological assistance have proven to be most successful," says Dr. Fino.

6. Look into taking supplements

"DHEA and CoQ10 are supplements that have shown some promise in association with an increase in egg quantity and quality," says Dr. Fino. "Talk to your doctor to see if he or she recommends them for you."

Multivitamins may also be helpful, adds Dr. Khan.

7. Ensure you have adequate levels of vitamin D

"Over 40% of individuals are deficient in Vitamin D, and there is emerging data on its association with infertility and worse IVF outcomes," says Tarun Jain, MD, medical director of Northwestern Medicine Fertility and Reproductive Medicine Oakbrook Terrace. "Ask your doctor to check your vitamin D level, and consider taking a vitamin D supplement."

8. Focus on persistence and patience.

"Many patients require more than one cycle of IVF to achieve an embryo for transfer and outcomes may vary significantly from cycle to cycle," says Shannon DeVore, MD, at NYU Langone Fertility Center. "If your first cycle wasn't successful, your doctor may be able to adjust the medications to optimize a subsequent one. Other times, it just means keeping at it. Try not to be discouraged by sub-optimal outcomes and setbacks—you are doing everything right. The single biggest thing to remember is that most (or all) of this is out of your control. Nobody likes lack of control, but sometimes letting go can help you endure the journey. Take care of yourself and don't blame yourself when things don't go well. You are not alone, it often takes a village to build a family."

 

Increase Your Chances of IVF Success

How does IVF work

IVF is a common treatment for people who are unable to conceive naturally

Usually in IVF, the woman has medicines (fertility hormones) to stimulate the ovaries to produce several eggs. The eggs are then collected and mixed with sperm in a laboratory.

IVF is carried out when the sperm quality is considered to be ‘normal’ If there are issues with the sperm quality such as low motility or numbers, a procedure called intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) may instead be used – this is where a single sperm is injected into the egg by an embryologist

If fertilisation is successful, the embryos are allowed to develop for between two and six days. This helps the embryologist to select the strongest embryo, which is then transferred back to the woman’s womb to hopefully continue to a successful birth.

Often several good quality embryos will be created. In these cases, it's normally best practice to freeze the remaining embryos because putting two embryos back in the womb increases your chance of having twins or triplets, which carries health risks. You can use your frozen embryos later on if your first cycle is unsuccessful or you want to try for another baby.

What does IVF involve?

This process outlines a single cycle of IVF following the most commonly used procedure. You may find that your treatment is slightly different depending on your history and what your clinic thinks is best for you.

• Usually, the first step is to use medication to stimulate the ovaries to produce eggs. There are different ways this can be done. One way is to suppress natural hormones before taking hormone medication to stimulate the ovaries. This treatment, often called a long protocol, involves taking a daily injection or nasal spray to suppress hormone production. A scan checks the woman’s natural cycle is fully suppressed. If it is, hormone treatment (usually gonadotrophin) is started to boost the number of eggs the body produces.
• Some clinics may use the ‘antagonist protocol’. This involves taking medication (an antagonist) to suppress your hormones for a few days after you have taken the hormone medication (usually gonadotrophin) to boost the number of eggs the body produces.
• Whichever way the ovaries are stimulated to produce eggs, you will be closely monitored for a few days by the clinic. This may involve having blood tests or ultrasound scans.
• The eggs will be collected whilst under sedation or general anaesthetic. The procedure takes around half an hour and you may feel a little sore or bruised.
• Whilst the eggs are being collected, the man will be asked to come to the clinic to produce a sperm sample, or your donor sperm will be taken from the freezer, for mixing with your eggs.
• Medication will help to prepare the lining of the womb. This is usually taken as a pessary or gel which you can insert yourself into the vagina / rectum.
• The eggs will be mixed with the sperm in a laboratory. The aim is for the eggs and sperm to fertilise to create an embryo.
• If fertilisation happens, the resulting embryo(s), will be monitored to check how it’s/they’re developing.
• Two to five days after fertilisation, the embryo(s) will be transferred to the womb. You won’t need any kind of anaesthetic for this unless you have a condition that would make the procedure painful. You’ll be given a date to do a pregnancy test. Although you’ll understandably be excited at this stage, try not to do this early as you may get a false result.