A Natural Cycle IVF is the procedure of monitoring the growth of a woman’s natural egg follicle growth without the use of hormone medications typically used to stimulate the ovary into producing multiple eggs.
Once a woman’s natural egg is developed – within a Natural Cycle IVF procedure – the remaining steps of the IVF process are taken in order to:
- Induce the egg’s ovulation
- Fertilize the egg
- Produce an embryo
- Transfer it into the patient’s uterus in order to achieve a successful pregnancy
Natural Cycle IVF
A patient’s natural egg growth – without the use of medications to stimulate growth – is monitored by the doctor regularly, visually observing the follicle with an ultrasound, in tandem with blood work ups, in order to track the egg’s growth and development.
When the patient’s egg is determined by the doctor to be at its optimum development, the egg is retrieved via aspiration in a surgical outpatient procedure while the patient is under local anesthesia – like that is performed in the typical IVF procedure.
The egg is then fertilized with sperm in a controlled laboratory setting and its growth is monitored until a high quality embryo has developed.
The quality embryo is then transferred into the patient’s uterus via a catheter for implantation into the patient’s uterine lining.
Natural Cycle IVF – or unstimulated in vitro fertilization – is an alternative to the traditional IVF cycle. Natural Cycle IVF costs less and is a proven patient-friendly IVF choice for achieving pregnancy.
3 Primary Reasons to Consider a Natural IVF Cycle
If you are considering undergoing IVF in order to achieve pregnancy, you should be aware of 3 primary reasons to consider a Natural Cycle IVF:
- Less medications, less injections, fewer side effects, less office visits, and lower stress on the patient.
- Less risk of ovarian hyperstimulation.
- Minimization of your production of excessive embryos and the reduction of your chance of a multiple pregnancy.
Natural Cycle IVF Candidates
Dr. George Kofinas – a doctor specializing in Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) – may recommend Natural Cycle IVF for patients in the following situations:
- For women who have not responded positively to fertility medications in prior, failed traditional IVF procedures. That is, when ovarian stimulation via medication injection has repeatedly failed to produce multiple embryos. Natural Cycle IVF gives these patients the chance of continuing on with subsequent IVF procedures using their natural egg production ability.
- For women who have a low tolerance for hormonal therapy or choose not to take fertility drugs in order to conceive, but who still want to benefit from the IVF process.
- For couples faced with infertility because of a male factor – low sperm count and/or poor quality sperm production – Natural Cycle IVF may offer a chance for egg fertilization via Intra-Cytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI).
- The fertile female patient can avoid ovarian stimulation and the couple has the chance of creating high quality embryos while simultaneously reducing the risk of a multiple pregnancy.
Explore Your Natural Cycle IVF Option with Kofinas Fertility Institute
It is Dr. George Kofinas’ experienced and professional opinion that Natural Cycle IVF can be a patient’s best alternative to the traditional IVF process because the procedure eliminates the expense of fertility medications, lessens the risk of a woman’s ovarian hyperstimulation, and minimizes the production of multiple embryos, thus eliminating the chance of a multiple pregnancy.
Explore your reasons to consider a Natural Cycle IVF today by contacting Kofinas Fertility Institute.