Hi all
I have been on here for sometime but I was scared to ask any questions.
Would anyone be able to advise single embryo versus double embryos transfer?
Literature it’s so confusing so any real life experiences insight would be very welcome.
Many thanks in advance
C x
I’ve had 4 transfers
I’ve only ever had BFPs when I’ve done double transfers although the first one ended in an ectopic. But I’m now 13 weeks with twins. My single transfers were BFN.....
Pros
Complete family in one shot? (Possibly!) don’t think I’ll persuade husband to transfer our remaining 2 embryos (these are children 2 and 3)
Cost - we couldn’t afford individual transfers having spent £35k already so clinic agreed to 2x double transfers
Apparently twins isn’t double the work of one baby plus they’ll hopefully keep themselves busy when older (ready made play mate!)
Cons
If you don’t have embryos of similar Quality you can actually reduce chance of success of both
Chance of miscarriage/complications are higher
Chance of ectopic and losing both is higher
Physically it’s much harder - I was in maternity wear by 8 weeks
Cost - childcare costs will be eye watering (I’m the main earner so zero chance of being a stay at home parent). Cost of twin Prams is horrendous!
Thank you very much x
Hi Brookes1509,
You’re probably going to get a lot of conflicting replies to this so might not be that helpful (sorry!🙈). I think it’s a bit more complicated than just one vs two and depends on what the quality of the embryos are. There is research that says if you transfer two but one is weaker, it can negatively effect implantation of the stronger embryo. But there is also research that says it doesn’t. What I do know is, having a double embryo transfer doesn’t increase your chance of a live birth vs a single embryo transfer.
I know it’s hugely confusing and a bit of a minefield and the best advice I can give you is to talk to your embryologist when the time comes and make a decision that is right for you in that moment. Whatever that is, will be the right thing for you. These are your embryos ❤️
Good luck xxxx
Thank you very much. Embryos are both same number of cells. Yes research is very confusing. But because I’m 43 chances of implantation are different I’ve read and like this of twins is small
Thank you very much though x
No problem. Definitely talk to your doctor and embryologist because age definitely changes what they recommend xx
Hi Just to add that the info provided by my clinic also makes clear that having a double embryo transfer doesn’t increase your chance of a live birth vs a single embryo transfer (or at least it only makes a marginal difference of about 1%, which is why the clinic has a 1 transfer policy as the norm, at least for first attempt and younger women). It is confusing tho - I am waiting for my frozen transfer and consultant has advised to implant both my frozens, saying there is very little chance of twins. I thought afterwards that maybe by implication, this means there is very little chance of anything! My frozens are graded 5AB and 4BC+ from memory. I think the decision is often made based on age, chance of success and number of previous cycles. Might be worth talking to the clinical team again. Best of luck with your decision
Thank you very much x
My clinic put two back in I never asked for this it was there suggestion. It was my first round and now I’m pregnant with just one baby 💙 I would just trust your clinic and see what they advise xxx
There are actually studies that show the opposite however - that the number of viable pregnancies per embryo is actually higher with twins than there are singles - rates of miscarriage being lower per embryo in a twin pregnancy than single one.
If your embryos are only at cell stage I don’t think you know enough about them to transfer together - they really need to be at blastocyst stage to determine the cell quality? And whether they should go together?
I put back a 5BA and a day 6 4BB but the embryologist spent a long time reviewing all the time lapse footage to determine which 2 blastocysts best complemented each other and I personally think that made all the difference in my case. I suppose part of me feels like my twins needed each other to be a successful pregnancy together (I’ve had 5 previous miscarriages too and had bad PGS results from a previous round but decided not to test these 2)
Hi Brookes, I can only give you my opinion 
our consultant said that about 50% of embryos created are chromosomally normal, so as we had 2 we decided to put them both back, thinking at least one might be ok! Rather than 2 transfers (more costly) where one of them was very likely to fail. xx
I had a double transfer on my fourth attempt and I now have 6 month old twin girls. With a twin pregnancy you are automatically high risk consultant led and have a lot less choice in terms of birth location method and monitoring. Personally I appreciated the consultant led care and extra scans which helped with my anxiety. Prematurity is another downside. My twins arrived at 35 weeks but fortunately didn’t need any neonatal care. Everything is harder with twins - Breastfeeding, weaning, going out to baby groups, feeling torn between the two and like I’m never giving them enough attention. I really didn’t appreciate that when I made my decision but I would make the same decision 1000x over. The benefits of having my family without needing to do any more treatment or another pregnancy for me far outweigh the risks. Infertility makes you strong and nothing is as hard as wanting a child. Good luck with whatever you decide xx
I asked for 2 embryos to be put back in on my first fresh transfer. Now 8 weeks pregnant with a single. Glad I put in the 2 as I don’t know which one stuck. Whatever you decide will be the right decision. Best of luck
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