WHY CHOOSE FROZEN EMBRYO TRANSFER?
Cryopreserving embryos for the future presents several advantages, including greater savings, access and convenience.
BLASTOCYST DEVELOPMENT
Allowing embryos to grow up to 5 days means that only the healthiest embryos survive, displaying natural selection. 5-day old blastocysts are more likened to organically developed embryos of a natural fertility cycle. As a result, the likelihood of implantation and pregnancy increase.
REPOSITORY OF SURPLUS EMBRYOS
The freezing of surplus embryos offers you a backup bank in case your first embryo transfer routine does not result in pregnancy. Frozen embryo transfer (FET) also entails a much lower cost and timeframe than if you were to restart an in vitro fertilisation (IVF) procedure from the ovum retrieval stage.
UNCONDUCIVE UTERUS
You may be advised by your doctor to freeze all your embryos in a given IVF cycle, especially when your endometrium exhibits traits of suboptimality. An underprepared endometrium may stem from the presence of a polyp or excessive endometrial fluid. In either situation, a transferred embryo presents minimal chances of implantation, and you may be advised to freeze your embryos until your uterus is more receptive.
OVARIAN HYPERSTIMULATION
Women with polycystic ovaries are prone to ovarian hyperstimulation. If severely stimulated ovaries are noticed, your embryo transfer may be postponed to the next month, allowing your ovaries enough time to heal.
ELEVATED HORMONES
Abnormally elevated hormones in an IVF cycle can adversely affect the endometrium and reduce chances of implantation. In such a case, a FET the following month is a recommended option.
GENETIC TESTING OF EMBRYOS
Genetic testing of embryos via preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) and preimplantation genetic screening (PGS) is a useful tool to filter out embryos that display an unfavourable genetic predisposition.