Should i go for icsi

A sperm cell will manage to pierce the wall of an egg and fertilize it. ICSI often is used when the male partner has fertility problems, known as male factor infertility. In other cases, the male partner may not have sperm in his ejaculate even though his testicles are producing sperm, due to blockages or abnormalities in the vas deferens, the tubes which deliver sperm from the testicles.

ICSI makes sure the sperm gets in and increases the chance of fertilization. Others only use it when male factor infertility is present or there are other issues, such when few eggs are produced by ovarian stimulation.

Research in the U. First, its proponents deeply believe that it cuts down on the risk of both miscarriage by transferring the embryos most likely to work and twin pregnancies by allowing them to select a single good embryo. Second, PGS is growing like crazy. So how does ICSI fit in here? Many of the third-party laboratories that run the PGS analysis do not require that the embryo was fertilized using ICSI, though they may be slow to admit it for fear of upsetting the referring clinics who are eager to perform ICSI.

While the acronyms are confusing, and the tests do have similarities, PGD, or preimplantation genetic diagnosis, is different from PGS. With PGD, doctors are using a biopsy of an embryo's cells to test that embryo for specific genetic diseases — these single gene disorders can be life threatening to a child. ICSI is regarded, and deployed, differently across regions. In a field where patients are desperate for good outcomes, many doctors think it is a mistake not to employ every weapon in their arsenal.

Especially when they believe the costs and risks of using treatments like ICSI are relatively harmless. PGT is a genetic analysis of embryos that checks for any chromosomal abnormalities and can screen for specific genetic diseases. By using ICSI, we reduce the risk of contaminating the cells taken from embryos for testing and increase our chances of receiving accurate PGT results.

As with any medical procedure, there are some risks involved. While traditional insemination can run the risk of failed fertilization, ICSI also carries a small risk to damage the egg. ICSI can be an invasive procedure and there are unknown variables that can affect the health of the egg. Generally, if we are using healthy sperm, the success rates of fertilization using conventional methods should be about the same as ICSI.

You might consider ICSI if you are facing male-factor infertility, interested in preimplantation genetic testing, or a variety of other reasons.

Talk to your fertility specialist about why ICSI might be the right option for you as you grow your family.