Through the IVF process, many women and men welcome babies into their families
The IVF process at our Chicago fertility clinic helps patients overcome a range of fertility conditions. IVF, or in vitro fertilization, is a popular, effective treatment option with high success rates. With IVF, patients often are able to create multiple embryos, which can then be transferred directly into the uterus of the patient or a gestational surrogate.
As part of the many IVF steps, you can choose testing to evaluate the genetic health of your embryos, which may increase your chances of success. IVF is a leading-edge treatment that changes the lives of many people.
Not everyone at our Illinois fertility center needs IVF
For most couples needing help to conceive, simple more natural methods can result in successful pregnancies. In our fertility center, only about twenty percent of our patients will need IVF for family building. If simple methods are not successful, Dr Deutch is able to transition quickly to IVF.
What to expect from the IVF steps, and how they help patients become parents
After determining that a patient or couple are good candidates for IVF, our fertility specialists guide them through the IVF steps. As the first step in the IVF process, Dr. Deutch creates an ideal timeline for treatment and orders the necessary medications.
Administration of ovulation induction medication. IVF begins with the hopeful mother or egg donor taking medications that cause multiple eggs to mature at the same time.
Monitoring. The IVF process requires frequent blood tests and ultrasounds for all women while on fertility medications.
Egg retrieval. When the woman’s eggs reach an ideal size, she takes a trigger shot that prepares the eggs for retrieval. About 36 hours later, the reproductive endocrinologist retrieves the eggs during a short procedure.
Fertilization. After retrieval, an embryologist combines the eggs with sperm from the male patient or a sperm donor. It is normal for not all eggs retrieved to fertilize. The goal is to get a few good embryos, and it often only takes one to achieve pregnancy.
Testing the genetic health of embryos. An embryologist can determine which embryos are chromosomally or genetically normal by performing one or more types of preimplantation genetic testing (PGT). This testing requires patients to opt for a frozen embryo transfer.
Transferring the embryo. After the patient and medical team select an embryo, the doctor transfers that embryo into the uterus of the woman or a gestational surrogate. The woman will continue to take medications through the pregnancy test, and if the test is positive, for several weeks beyond.
Patients at our Chicago fertility clinic receive a pregnancy test about two weeks after the embryo transfer. For many, this is a moment of profound joy and excitement.
Contact us for more information about IVF steps.