Grading of embryos

[beginnerAdviceNeeded]

Hi all, just wanted to ask what people’s thoughts of the “grading” I was told mine were grade C and I got upset with myself as I thought what could I’d of done to get a better grade... then I was told that it doesn’t really matter on the grading, they grade it by how pretty” it looks? How txt book says it’s meant to look. So just wanted to see what you all thought or knew of this? X

[Cinderella5]

To be honest, the grading is how they look however it doesnt mean to stay they'll stick, not does it mean they are chromosomally normal. Statistically the best ones have the best rates of success however Ive seen lots of ladies not have success with "great embryos" and go on to have succes with more "moderately" graded embryos. There are so many things that have to be right for this to work along with a lot ot luck and sometimes its just a case of the right embryo at the right time!! Ive always been told not to get too hung up on grading and Ive put back some text book embryos and others not to great....I got my positives on the not so great ones although they didnt stick around too long. Best of luck.xx

[Maryc32]

Hi my doctor said it wasn’t how likely they were to work but how likely they were to survive the freeze/thaw. I got one A and a few Cs and they said As were 98% likely to survive a thaw and cs about 85%+

But then I’ve heard completely different things from people at different clinics so each clinic has own grading x

[beginnerAdviceNeeded]

Thank you both for responding, my doctor said that in the future they are looking at “not telling the patient” the grading as it’s not that important for us to know it’s more for the lab.... its Reassuring that things can work not matter what the grade is.. definitely agree it’s luck. I wish you all the luck in the world ❤️ x

[12356 in reply to beginnerAdviceNeeded]

I was actually not told my grade 😀and here i am with my 27 weeks berry, all the best my darling ❤❤❤

[KiboXX]

My clinic doesn’t tell you the grading of your embryos exactly for this reason! All they tell you is whether they are good enough to freeze or not because it can cause unnecessary upset or worry if it’s not a perfect grading xx

[beginnerAdviceNeeded in reply to KiboXX]

Yea, maybe this should be something all clinics look into as Iv definitely been worried and upset knowing the results. And I can be sure I’m not the only one. Xx

[CLDxxx in reply to beginnerAdviceNeeded]

I’ve completely over thought the grading & wish I didn’t know either!

I read something recently about grading and it said, ‘if we were all graded in life as humans would any of us be A’s?’ No ☺️

Try not to worry. If they’re good enough to freeze, they’re good enough to work 💞xxx

[KiboXX in reply to CLDxxx]

Love this ❤️

[CLDxxx in reply to KiboXX]

❤️

[Ivfgotadream]

I’m a control freak who likes the google the shit out of everything! 🤣 so I always find out my grades on both day 3 and 5

I know grading is more for the purpose of freezing. The embryologist also told me it’s VERY subjective and some grade much harsher than others. Take mine for example - I transferred a 5BA and a day 6 4BB - originally I thought they would transfer the day 5 3BB but he said if he had graded it first time round he would have said its more like a 2BB whereas the day 6 was more like a BA or AA. They looked at the time lapse footage of the 4 I had frozen and said the two I put back were the most similar in terms of good quality

I do have a screen shot of a report which was done about grading and success rates - there is very little in it between 4/5 AA/AB/BA but it does apparently drop off a bit at BB and again for anything with a C in it - it’s the difference Between 40% at AA and 20% at BC

What’s more important though is whether it s a stage 2/3 or 4/5 - hatching is best because sometimes freezing can harden the outer shell and make hatching difficult so my clinic prioritised hatching/starting to hatch first

[Maryc32]

Also, forgot to mention in my last reply. It’s worth noting that I’ve heard lots of stories of people having fails initially then getting success after a few transfers with their “lower grade” embryos.

So don’t read too much into it. The grading might tell them something but they don’t know ultimately which ones will work and which ones will won’t (imagine how much bloody quicker it would be if they did 🤗) xx

[Running79]

I was told, grading is personal opinion - you could have 4 separate embryologist all looking at exactly the same embryos, and they will all come up with different headings, so I’d take no notice of it! I previously had a 5BB and a 3BB, the 5BB ended in a miscarriage and the 3BB didn’t even register

[FertileMind]

Dear beginnerAdviceNeeded

Each clinic has their own grading system. They eyeball the embryos and grade them according to the morphology (the shape they can visually see). Unless they do PGT-A testing, you won't know if they are chromosomally normal or abnormal, and they only do that if they are a fully formed blastocyst and have enough cells to biosy and send away prior to freezing them. They don't biopsy morulas, I believe.

Clinics also don't usually freeze morulas (the stage before they become blastocysts). I specifically asked to know exactly which stage they were on Day 5 and 6.

Remember these are YOUR embryos - you can decide to freeze them or not. People fall pregnant with implanting morulas... and as we get older, every fertilised embryo is precious.

If I'd known before my 3rd and final round of IVF, that clinics don't usually freeze morulas and early blastocycts of a "low grade" I would have asked more questions and made more decisions for myself in my first 2 rounds... the value of hindsight and forums like this, and people sharing their experiences.

Don't be afraid to ask. If the frosties don't make the thaw, they were not meant to be, but I want to give all my embryos that lasted so long in a petrie dish, the best chance of becoming my child.

[LisaBeatrix1980]

Hi, I agree with what everyone else has said. I only had 2 embryos get to blastocyst, both grade C, one was a C-. They both survived freezing and I had them put back in last week so I am 2WW, but I was so happy because I went from feeling disappointment with just 2 grade Cs to elation that they survived and are now back where they belong.

The best thing I was told was to be positive and have complete confidence, because there is very little else you can control. So I think you’ve done brilliantly and grades don’t have to be everything x

[beginnerAdviceNeeded]

Wow, I’m so overwhelmed with the response of this. I’m not up to date with all the terms used in this subject but I kinda get the drift. Only had one round and I had two embryos put back. Of which I miscarriage. I’m having the “glue” and “scratch” as additionals to try and help the process. Has anyone else had this?

Thanks again to everyone who’s responded, each message was helpful to me ❤️ X