Icsi or Ivf: Hey, does anyone have any... - Fertility Network UK

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Icsi or Ivf

Heathers82 profile image
12 Replies

Hey, does anyone have any recommendations for one over the other? My wife and I are being recommended icsi as we will be using frozen sperm and apparently frozen sperm doesnt have the same motility as fresh. We were wondering if anyone had used a higher graded motility sperm and if this made a difference to their icsi choice or not?

Icsi is more expensive and does come with slightly higher birth defect risks, so that worries us slightly too.

Any advice would be great

🙂

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Heathers82
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12 Replies

Who told u they have higher birth defects???

Fingerscrossed34 profile image
Fingerscrossed34 in reply to

That’s true, we need ICSI and the hospital told us. It’s because they choose a sperm specifically and that sperm may never have made it and also because they force fertilise and egg that may never have been fertilised, but the increase in these things is very very tiny.

in reply toFingerscrossed34

Its not even high at all... otherwise they would not let people have it.. its like saying my docs will let me transfer 5 embryos but risks are there they wont let u take that risk... that's what i believe anyway. Btw where you having your ivf/icsi? Im having my soon x

Fingerscrossed34 profile image
Fingerscrossed34 in reply to

Well IVF and ICSI both increase birth defects but they are small risks. All of these procedures have risks they just have to manage them and figure out what ones are more of a concern I guess. We’re in our TWW now which is great as we didn’t know if we’d get this far but I’m also desperate to know!

in reply toFingerscrossed34

Aww wow where did u have urs done? How old are u? X

Fingerscrossed34 profile image
Fingerscrossed34 in reply to

Sorry Heather for hijacking your thread! I’m 34, our clinic is in Edinburgh. x

Heathers82 profile image
Heathers82 in reply toFingerscrossed34

Thanks for responding 🙂

We have done one round full icsi, one round ivf and one round half and half. If we get enough mature eggs we tend to do half and half but full icsi if less eggs. We found of our rounds the icsi were the better quality embryo and some made it to blasto and we did get a bfp from an icsi embryo. Our clinic does tend to decide on both egg numbers but also sperm quality that day. I wouldn’t hesitate to use icsi. Good luck x

Heathers82 profile image
Heathers82 in reply to

Thanks very much 😊

Hi, no advice about motility but this is our experience: our first round we went for IVF and out of 14 eggs collected only 1 fertilised. Our second round we did ICSI and out of 21 eggs 17 fertilised and 4 made it to blastocyst stage. Sadly I am yet to become a Mum. We are thinking of going for one more round and consultant has recommended ICSI again.

Good luck in your decision and journey xxx

Heathers82 profile image
Heathers82 in reply to

Thanks Pandora. Stay positive, it will happen one day x

Kyell2 profile image
Kyell2

I wish I had opted for ICSI rather than IVF to be honest but the clinic seemed happy with IVF and so I went with that.

We had 10 eggs collected, used frozen donated sperm and eggs looked good quality and 8 didn’t fertilise and they don’t know why. This wouldn’t have happened with ICSI and if our one frozen embryo does work then I’m definitely doing ICSI next time.

I’ve read about the higher birth defect rate but I believe that the risk is low. It’s a personal choice though.

Good luck with your decision xx

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