More tips for 1st Time IVF Success - Will Endometrial Scratch improve em...

There have been lots of different techniques described to improve the chances for 1st Time IVF Success. One of those techniques is called endometrial scratching. But will this help an IVF embryo implantation?



The basic process is pretty simple. A doctor puts some sort of instrument or catheter into the uterus. The uterine lining is then intentionally damaged by scraping it or sucking some pieces into a catheter or other methods.



Sounds kind of crazy, right? Why would anybody want to intentionally damage the uterine lining? Well, there is a theory that by doing this, that maybe you can get a big release of growth factors or other beneficial molecules that might help increase the chances for an embryo to implant.



In fact, there have been some studies that seemed to show an improvement in the chance for implantation in couples who had multiple failures. But what about couples who are doing their very first IVF transfer?



In early 2019, researchers searched for a bunch of studies that have looked at endometrial scratch for 1st time IVF success. They combined all of the data into one giant study called a meta analysis. What did they find? Unfortunately, it didnt work. Couples who had the scratch didn't do any better than couples who didn't.



Our InfertilityTV Bottom line. If you are going to be doing your very first IVF embryo transfer - dont do the scratch- it doesn't help



Make sure you check out THIS playlist for more first time IVF success tips.



#IVFImplantationTips #FirstTimeIVFSuccess #EndometrialScratch





Dr Randy Morris MD-The BOARD CERTIFIED fertility expert with weekly TTC tips on InfertilityTV



Infertility TV is your weekly source for the best medical information if you have infertility, recurrent miscarriage or are just trying to conceive. (TTC). InfertilityTV covers infertility testing, fertility treatments such as Clomid, Follistim and Crinone and fertility treatments like IUI and IVF (in vitro fertilization)



One of the most popular playlists on InfertilityTV are the TTC tips which are great even you are not struggling with infertility



Dr Morris is a practicing IVF and infertility expert who sees patients at IVF! located in the Naperville Fertility Center.



Increase your "Infertelligence"  ™



Subscribe to Infertility TV now!!!

A new episode of Infertility TV is broadcast weekly every Thursday afternoon



or visit our website at IVF1.com



*******************************************

Do you want to become a patient at IVF1?

*******************************************



Register online here:

https://patient.ivf1.com/PatientPortal/NewPatient



Or call:

630-357-6540

IVF Frozen embryo transfer - FET - What is the best way to prepare the u...

IVF FET or Frozen embryo transfer is associated with an almost 10% better chance for pregnancy than fresh transfer. The benefit is thought to be in the preparation of the uterus. But what is the best way to prepare the uterus?



In order to prepare the uterus for implantation, you need two hormones: estrogen and progesterone. Simply put, the estrogen makes the uterine lining thicker and progesterone changes the lining so it can accept an embryo.



The most common method for uterine preparation has a woman taking medications containing estrogen and progesterone to prepare the uterus. The estrogen is given commonly by a pill orally but can also be given vaginally. Some doctors like to give estrogen patches or even estrogen injections. Progesterone is given typically as a vaginal suppository in combination with progesterone injections.



Less commonly, doctors may choose to use the estrogen and progesterone that a woman makes naturally when she develops an egg and ovulates. This is known as Natural cycle FET. Obviously, if a woman does not ovulate, this method is not an option



Which way is better? Several studies have compared the two methods. As happens many times with medical studies, the studies did not all agree on the same conclusion. In other words, some studies indicated that natural cycle FET was better. Some studies concluded that hormone FET was better and some said it didnt matter



When this happens, we at InfertilityTV will look for a type of study called a meta analysis. With a meta analysis, multiple smaller studies can be combined into one larger study. The greater number of patients studies, the greater the chance that you will get valid conclusions



So, in 2019, a group of doctors from Brazil performed a meta analysis comparing natural cycle FET to hormone FET. In the end, the meta analysis looked at 5 studies involving nearly 9000 FET cycles. What did they find?  Neither natural cycle or hormone prepared FET could be proven to be better.



So, if you are planning to do an FET cycle. Its probably ok to choose either one of these methods. However, I will point out that doing a natural cycle can be much more difficult because of the close monitoring that is required to determine the exact time of ovulation. For these reasons, at IVF1, we prefer to do do FET cycles with hormone preparation



Infertility TV is your weekly source for the best medical information if you have infertility, recurrent miscarriage or are just trying to conceive. (TTC). InfertilityTV covers infertility testing, fertility treatments such as Clomid, Follistim and Crinone and fertility treatments like IUI and IVF (in vitro fertilization)



One of the most popular playlists on InfertilityTV are the TTC tips which are great even you are not struggling with infertility



Dr Morris is a practicing IVF and infertility expert who sees patients at IVF! located in the Naperville Fertility Center.



Increase your "Infertelligence"  ™



Subscribe to Infertility TV now!!!

A new episode of Infertility TV is broadcast weekly every Thursday afternoon



or visit our website at IVF1.com



*******************************************

Do you want to become a patient at IVF1?

*******************************************



Register online here:

https://patient.ivf1.com/PatientPortal/NewPatient



Or call:

630-357-6540

First Time IVF Success Tips : Does Embryo Testing (PGD / PGS / CCS ) Ma...

Abnormal embryos could be affecting your chances for First Time IVF Success. Embryo testing, using PGD or PGS, can help identify abnormal embryos. But does the type of testing make a difference? Find out in today’s episode of InfertilityTV.



Here is the simple explanation. Most of the embryos that humans make are abnormal. Normal embryos have certain number of chromosomes. 23 from the mother and 23 from the father. A total of 46. If an embryo has more or less than that - it is considered abnormal. Three things happen to abnormal embryos if they are placed into the uterus.

They fail to implant and you don’t get pregnant

The embryo implants but later miscarries. Chromosome abnormality is the most common cause for miscarriage

The embryo implants but doesn’t miscarry. These will result in babies with birth defects like Down syndrome



We have excellent evidence that testing embryos for chromosome abnormalities in older women will increase the chance for pregnancy, reduce the risk for miscarriage and reduce the chance for those birth defects.



However, there are different technologies for testing embryos and they don't all work the same.

The oldest technology, known by its acronym “FISH” only looks at a few chromosomes. It really has no place for chromosome screening today



A newer technology known as array CGH was a significant improvement over FISH in that it looked at all 23 pairs of chromosomes. It is still in common use today.



The most recent technology is known as Next Generation Sequencing which also has the ability to look at all 23 pairs of chromosomes but has the further ability to identify some types of structural abnormalities and cases when an embryo has a mixture of different chromosome types - a problem known as mosaicism.



In 2018, researchers looked at nearly 1000 cases in which couples had a single embryo transfer after chromosome testing by either aCGH or NGS. Their findings are very important for you. They found that the ability of an embryo to implant in the uterus and continue as a normal pregnancy was better for NGS than for aCGH.



Our InfertilityTV recommendation for our patients is (until a better technology comes along), Next Generation Sequencing is the best method for embryo testing and results in nearly a 10% increase in the chance for an ongoing pregnancy.



#FirstTimeIVFsuccess  #PGS #NGS



Infertility TV is your weekly source for the best medical information if you have infertility, recurrent miscarriage or are just trying to conceive. (TTC). InfertilityTV covers infertility testing, fertility treatments such as Clomid, Follistim and Crinone and fertility treatments like IUI and IVF (in vitro fertilization)



One of the most popular playlists on InfertilityTV are the TTC tips which are great even you are not struggling with infertility



Dr Morris is a practicing IVF and infertility expert who sees patients at IVF! located in the Naperville Fertility Center.



Increase your "Infertelligence"  ™



Subscribe to Infertility TV now!!!

A new episode of Infertility TV is broadcast weekly every Thursday afternoon



or visit our website at IVF1.com



*******************************************

Do you want to become a patient at IVF1?

*******************************************



Register online here:

https://patient.ivf1.com/PatientPortal/NewPatient



Or call:

630-357-6540

First Time IVF Success - Should you have your tubes removed?

Will removal of blocked fallopian tubes improve your chances for First Time IVF Success? In some cases, this can result in doubling of your chances for IVF Success. IVF expert Dr Randy Morris explains in this episode of InfertilityTV.

You may have heard that some doctors recommend removal of blocked fallopian tubes prior to embryo transfer in order to improve first time IVF success. Is this something you should consider?

Getting pregnant with #IVF requires a lot of things to be perfect. For starters, you have to have a healthy, normal embryo and the uterine lining has to be at the right stage stage of development. But there could be other things that interfere with pregnancy. For example, if there is fluid in the uterus at the time of the transfer or shortly after. 

IVF experts have known for a long time that when it comes time to put an embryo into the uterus, fluid in the uterine cavity will lower the chances of success. In some cases, the cause for fluid in the uterine cavity is not known. In other cases, however, fluid in the cavity can be the result of blocked fallopian tubes.

This is important because blocked fallopian tubes is a common reason why couples need to do IVF in the first place. There are two categories of blocked tubes. Proximal blockage occurs when the tubes are blocked right where they attach to the uterus. Distal blockage is a block that occurs at the far end of the fallopian tube. Distal blockage is the kind that can result in fluid in the uterine cavity. You see, the tubes normally produce fluid that can escape out the end but if the end if blacked, that fluid can accumulate inside the tube and eventually leak into the uterine cavity. This is known as a hydrosalpinx.

This has a dramatic impact on pregnancy rates. Women with #hydrosalpinx have a 50% lower chance for pregnancy compare to women without. 

So how do you know if you have a hydrosalpinx? There are three methods

1) Ultrasound can sometimes find a swollen fluid filled fallopian tube 

2) An x-ray test called a hysterosalpingogram is an excellent non invasive way to find a hydrosalpinx

3) A surgical procedure, such as a laparoscopy, is invasive but is also an accurate way to find a hydrosalpinx.

At IVF1, we recommend that all women who are going to be treated with IVF should be assessed for hydrosalpinx. If found, then we recommend that she have her fallopian tubes surgically removed before attempting to have an embryo transfer.

However, women who do not have hydrosalpinx will not benefit from fallopian tube removal.

#FirsttimeIVFSuccess

Infertility TV is your weekly source for the best medical information if you have infertility, recurrent miscarriage or are just trying to conceive. (TTC). InfertilityTV covers infertility testing, fertility treatments such as Clomid, Follistim and Crinone and fertility treatments like IUI and IVF (in vitro fertilization) 

One of the most popular playlists on InfertilityTV are the TTC tips which are great even you are not struggling with infertility

Dr Morris is a practicing IVF and infertility expert who sees patients at IVF! located in the Naperville Fertility Center. 

Increase your "Infertelligence"  ™

Subscribe to Infertility TV now!!!

A new episode of Infertility TV is broadcast weekly every Thursday afternoon

or visit our website at IVF1.com

*******************************************

Do you want to become a patient at IVF1?

******************************************* 

Register online here:

https://patient.ivf1.com/PatientPortal/NewPatient 

Or call:

630-357-6540

First Time IVF Success: The surprising facts about low dose aspirin

Today’s video is about the use of low dose aspirin to help with IVF success. Should you take a low dose aspirin every day to increase your chance for first time IVF success.



Why aspirin you ask? Isn’t heparin for headaches? Actually, aspirin has a lot of different effects. At standard doses, it can help reduce the pain of headaches and is also effective for reducing fevers. In low doses, aspirin can also reduce the risk for blood clots and improve circulation in the tiniest blood vessels.



Specifically, low dose aspirin has been found, in various studies, to improve blood flow to the ovaries during the use of fertility medications and improve the thickness of the uterine lining which could help with implantation.



But, does the use of low dose aspirin actually get more couples pregnant and more couples to deliver a baby.



A number of studies have been published which have tried to answer this question. The results have been mixed. This means that some studies showed a benefit to using low dose aspirin and some studies found no benefit.



This happens fairly often in medicine where studies reach different conclusions. One way to figure out what is going on is to combine all of the smaller studies into one very big study. This is called a meta-analysis. Think of it this way, doctors can be more confident about the results of a study if you have 1,000 patients compared to say 100. Meta-analyses can also weed out studies that were not of very good quality.



So what’s the bottom line? In 2017, a meta-analysis of 13 studies which included over 3000 women was published. Compared to women who didn’t receive any, women given low dose aspirin during their IVF cycle had the same number of eggs retrieved, the same fertilization rate, the same uterine lining thickness, the same percentage of embryos implanted and the same delivery rate.



So the bottom line is this. Low dose aspirin is unlikely to improve your chances for IVF success or if it does, the effect is probably really small. So why do doctors still recommend low dose aspirin? WEll, the data didn’t show any harm to using low dose aspirin. In addition, it is inexpensive and doesn’t have any significant side effects. The hope is that there might be some rare patients that might still benefit.