Dr. Gabrielle Dezarnaulds IVF and Fertility Specialist

Dr. Gabrielle Dezarnaulds IVF and Fertility Specialist

An overview of IVF treatment for Infertility

I would like to give you an idea of what happens during an In Vitro Fertilisation (IVF) treatment to help demystify the process and explain why we do what we do. 

What is the female body doing normally to reproduce?

In most women, each month, a batch of eggs is maturing towards ovulation. Soon after a period starts, the egg that is developmentally slightly ahead of the rest (ahead because it “started the race earlier”, not because it will be the “best”) is allowed to continue developing and the rest of the eggs in that batch die off. Once that egg reaches maturity a hormone (LH) is released “triggering” the egg to ovulate. (If you are trying to conceive) hopefully the egg meets a sperm in the fallopian tube, fertilises, develops for about five days while travelling down the tube and into the uterus and, on day five or six after fertilisation, implants into the lining of the uterus. Meanwhile the ovary has continued to produce hormones (mainly progesterone) to keep the uterus quiet and ready to receive the embryo.

IVF treatment involves manipulating hormones to help your body produce more eggs.

In an IVF cycle the same hormone your body usually uses to make eggs mature (FSH) is given but at a higher dose than your body would usually produce – so more of the batch of eggs matures rather than just the one. That is you will grow the egg that was going to mature and ovulate anyway and some of the ones that would have otherwise have died off, not eggs for future cycles. (The medications will only work on eggs that have “started the race”, we will have an idea of this number through ovarian reserve tests undertaken prior to starting IVF. IVF treatment does not use up your reserve eggs. )

A second medication is then given to prevent your body signaling for those eggs to ovulate (ie. To prevent you “triggering” ovulation) and allow us to time when I will retrieve them.

I “watch” your ovaries with blood tests and ultrasounds to judge when your eggs are mature (usually two or three blood tests +/- ultrasounds over about 10 days) and, when I judge your eggs are mature, you give yourself a medication that works like LH and signals to the eggs to get ready to ovulate. This is the “trigger” medication.

This medication is timed very precisely (you will be given clear instructions). I will trigger you to ovulate whatever day I judge will give you the best chance and not when it is convenient for me. I undertake egg retrievals seven days a week.

The medications (FSH, LH, trigger) are all injections. The needles are very small and need to be inserted just under the skin. Most women who do IVF have never previously given themselves an injection – the injections are designed to be simple to use and you will be shown how to give them. Some women prefer their partner or a friend to give the injections, some prefer to come to the clinic for a nurse to give the injection. Most women find the injections much easier than they expect.