What is the success rate of IVF on the first try?
With the advent of Assisted reproduction technologies and In Vitro Fertilization techniques, having babies through artificial methods has helped many aspiring couples realize their dreams of parenthood.
For couples, trying to have a child through extensive procedures like IVF; can be physically, emotionally, and financially draining. And so, it becomes crucial to understand the chances of a successful IVF prone to differ individually.
While there are chances of having a successful IVF pregnancy on the first go itself, what if the IVF fails, can be a question clogging your mind. IVF success rate varies individually depending on the maternal age, the techniques and procedures used, experience and expertise of the doctor, and the cause of infertility a couple is experiencing.
Although the success rate is well above 40% for the first IVF cycle, and many have had successful IVFs in the first attempt, some may require more than one IVF cycle to accomplish their parenthood dreams.
This article helps understand the IVF success rates, factors influencing the IVF success, and how you can go about after an unsuccessful IVF.
Table of Contents
Feel free to skip ahead if one topic catches your eye:
- What is the success rate of IVF on the first try?
- Factors Impacting IVF Success Rates
- Tip for successful IVF cycle
- If it Fails, When Should I Try Again?
1. What is the success rate of IVF on the first try?
Are you planning for an IVF treatment for the first time and worrying about the success rate? With the high rise in infertility rates, IVF has been a silver lining for couples aspiring to have babies. The best part of IVF treatment is that it can get successful even on the first attempt. And if opting for a second attempt after a failed IVF, your chances of success are likely to increase provided you have a proper analysis of the reasons for a failed IVF.
The IVF success rate is the rate of conducting an IVF procedure successfully subject to change between clinics. The rate of IVF success is the percentage of the number of successful IVF cycle embryo transfers (ET) to the total number of IVF performed in a clinic.
Every clinic in India gives a different success rate that depends on variable factors. However, considering all the factors influencing IVF success rate, including maternal age, the IVF success rate in India is around 40%.
2. Factors Impacting IVF Success Rates
Previously, speculations were running around, about IVF procedures and success rates. But, now, things seem changed, and with wide acceptance, millions have embraced parenthood through IVF. The success of the whole process of IVF is influenced by factors such as:
- Age of the mother: One of the most influencing factors of IVF success rate is maternal age. Generally, women under 40 have higher IVF success rates than women above 40. And women between the age of 24 to 34 are more likely to have a higher IVF success rate. The reason is that advancing age can impact the quality and quantity of eggs produced.
- Reasons for infertility: Infertility in men and women can be due to various causes. Some of them can be addressed through the IVF infertility treatment like:
- Sperm fertility factors- low sperm count, poor sperm quantity, abnormal sperm morphology
- Ovulatory disorders- irregular menstruations or delayed menstrual periods
- Unexplained fertility
- Fertilization issues
- Egg quality problems
- Genetic conditions of the couples
- The blocked uterus or fallopian tubes in women
- Blocked ducts or vas deferens in men
- Retrograde ejaculation and erectile dysfunction in men
- The clinic and doctor's experience: The clinics' embryological lab set-up, technologies used, and the doctor's expertise to handle complications associated with infertility also adds to IVF success rate.
- IVF advanced procedures: Preimplantation genetic testing (PGT) of embryos, Intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), laser-assisted hatching, blastocyst culture, and many more can help improve IVF success rates.
3. Tips for successful IVF cycle
Lifestyle and environmental factors like smoking, exposure to harmful chemicals, pesticides, and stress can influence IVF success rates. If you are planning for an IVF treatment, taking precautions and following tips can help optimize your chances of a successful IVF attempt.
- Maintain a healthy body weight by eating healthy, maintaining proper eating habits, moderately exercising, and shedding the extra kilos for a healthy pregnancy and IVF.
- Make changes in your lifestyle. These include avoiding smoking and alcohol intake. Avoid exposure to cigarette smoke, harmful chemicals, and pesticides before and during the IVF treatment, as these can impact your IVF success rates.
- The Clinic's experience, expertise of IVF specialists, and the technology and techniques used also determines the IVF success rates. Choosing the right clinic is an important step towards IVF success.
- Advanced IVF techniques, like PGT, ICSI, Laser-assisted hatching, embryo implantation enhancement protocols, can make a difference and enhance your chances of IVF success.
- Intended parents experience a lot of stress and anxiety during IVF. And this can negatively impact IVF success. Try to destress, relax, continue with hobbies and activities of interest, exercise, maintain a healthy fertility diet and routine while undergoing the IVF procedure.
4. If it Fails, When should I try again?
IVF journey can be arduous, and IVF failure can be distressing, painful, and heart-wrenching. IVF can drain your finances as well. Although coping with an IVF failure is not easy, having a stable mind and the courage to overcome the emotional toll is the key.
Sometimes a natural pregnancy can also be possible after a failed IVF attempt. You can speak with your doctor and look for options to consider a natural pregnancy or analyze the reasons for failure with IVF failure evaluations such as:
- Uterine evaluation test or Hysterosalpingogram (HSG)- Done to assess the uterus and fallopian tubes.
- Sperm DNA fragmentation test- To check the integrity of the sperm DNA
- Endometrial receptivity assay (ERA)- To determine if the uterine lining is receptive for implantation.
- Preimplantation genetic testing for Aneuploidy (PGT-A)- Screening of embryos for aneuploidies
- And other immunological tests- To detect immunological abnormalities
Once the reason for IVF failure is analyzed, you will need to be strong from within before you decide to proceed with another IVF cycle. Statistically proven, the possibility of IVF success increases with the second IVF cycle which is almost 51%.
If considering a second IVF cycle, you can choose to use the embryos preserved during the first cycle or even go with donor options. Medically, you can have the second IVF embryo transfer even after a month of IVF failure.
However, healing yourself physically and emotionally must be the priority and trying after a few months of complete healing would be ideal.
Takeaway
IVF is a very laborious and stressful process of hormonal interventions, regular clinic visits, and extensive procedures. With progressive technologies in ART, IVF success rates have drastically improved. And there are better chances of having a successful IVF even on the first attempt.
Dr. Preeti Singh is a renowned Obstetrician-Gynecologist in Noida. Her experience in handling complicated infertility cases and IVF is immense. She ensures your fertility-related issues are dealt with great care and expertise.