“Infertility is a really large problem in the United States and all over the world,” says Pavna Brahma, M.D., a reproductive endocrinologist at Piedmont Atlanta Hospital.
In fact, approximately one in eight couples who attempt pregnancy has difficulty conceiving a child. With the help of modern fertility treatment, particularly in vitro fertilization (IVF), couples are realizing their dreams of becoming parents.
“In vitro fertilization is a great technology to help couples conceive,” says Dr. Brahma.
The process consists of five steps:
Step 1: Medication
The woman is given injection hormones to stimulate healthy egg development. IVF helps her produce more eggs than she would in a normal month.
“In a typical ovulatory month, we recruit and ovulate one egg,” explains Dr. Brahma. “With IVF, our goal is to make 10 or 15 eggs.”
Step 2: Harvest the eggs
Eggs are then collected from the ovaries via a minor surgery during which the woman is sedated and the eggs are retrieved trans-vaginally.
“We use a small needle guide to pass a needle over a trans-vaginal ultrasound to remove fluid from the follicles,” she explains.
On the same day, sperm is collected from the male partner.
Step 3: Fertilization
The egg and sperm are then combined in a lab through varying technologies of fertilization, such as intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI).
Step 4: Embryo culture
“The embryologists will observe the embryos as they divide from two cells to four cells and then eight cells,” says Dr. Brahma. “We watch as they have a growth, sometimes up to five days out at the blastocyst stage, where they have 100 or 125 cells.”
Step 5: Embryo transfer
During an embryo transfer, a woman’s uterus is watched by ultrasound and a small catheter is placed into the uterine cavity through the cervix. The embryo(s) are then placed in the uterus. Ten days later, the woman returns to the clinic for a blood test to determine if she’s pregnant.
Delivering the good news
“Going through IVF is a process that we endure together,” says Dr. Brahma. “A really exciting moment is getting to make a phone call to a patient giving her the great news that it has worked and her pregnancy test is positive. It’s one of the most exciting phone calls I get to make.”
Need to make an appointment with a Piedmont physician? Save time, book online.