I'm due to start IVF tomorrow and we've been asked whether we consent to ICSI. My partner is dead against it as he thinks the risk of male infertility in the child is too much of a risk. I'm not sure why he thinks this though as there's not much research from what I've seen. He has a daughter with autism so he's very anxious about genetic malformations too.
Does anyone have any experience or advice about this please?
Hi lovely I’ve been doing ivf with icsi from 2013 and I have never heard or been told by a doctor that it can cause male infertility that’s a load of rubbish who ever as told him that
Women who can not conceive are not going to do a procedure that can then make there baby have male infertility we wouldn’t wish it on are worse enemies let alone give that are children after taking so long just to have them
My son is 1 now healthy thank god smart and so quick at everything I understand your partners worry’s because is daughters not well but he is worry for nothing
They are lots of women on here that’s had baby’s with icsi and there children are happy healthy baby’s
Wish you loads of luck with your treatment lovely xx
I've been doing IVF for almost three years and similar to Lana89 I've never been told by a doctor that it can cause male infertility. icsi is a proven technique for selecting better quality sperm that has been demonstrated to be successful in particular in cases where there is a male infertility factor. Perhaps if your partner speaks to the doctor with you and hears the doctor say this then he may reconsider? Another option is trying to do some of the eggs with conventional IVF and some with icsi.
This has no scientific base what so ever....genetic problems come from both sides in fact you can argue that as the best sperm ( more motile, with normal head...etc) are selected when doing icsi this reduce the chance of a sperm that is not suitable to fertilise the egg.My husband has male factor which is why we had to to IVF and my best round was when we decided to use ICSI....currently 13 weeks pregnant....everything seems good so far ♥️ I must say I never heard that any problems come from icsi!
Hi there,
Here’s the official advice from the HFEA website which summarises the risk.
ICSI carries slightly more risks than some other fertility treatments, including a risk that eggs may be damaged when they’re cleaned and injected with sperm.
It has been suggested that the use of ICSI may also be associated with long-term health issues for the children born. However, we cannot prove this either way until we have more conclusive evidence.
Risks that may be associated with ICSI include:
certain genetic and developmental defects in a very small number of children born using this treatment; however, problems that have been linked with ICSI may have been caused by the underlying infertility, rather than the treatment itself
the possibility that a boy conceived as a result of ICSI may inherit his father’s, or donor's, infertility (it is too early to know if this is the case, as the oldest boys born from ICSI are still in their teens). However, where there is a clearly defined genetic cause of male infertility, particularly if it is associated with the Y chromosome, it is highly likely that male offspring will inherit their father’s, or donor's, infertility.
If you think this might apply to you, you may want to consider having genetic testing first to avoid the low sperm count being passed onto a male child. You’ll probably want to discuss the full implications of taking these tests with your clinic’s counsellor before going ahead
source: hfea.gov.uk/treatments/expl...
As explained above, there’s not enough evidence to link ICSI with these risks and we need to be mindful about existing factors like your partners infertility (or yours) for example. My husband has male factor infertility with unknown genetic cause and we did ICSI. I’m currently 12 weeks pregnant so far for us it has worked. Good luck on whatever you decide to do.
Hope this helps!
Useful info here.
I guess the main thing is to understand why the clinic are recommending ICSI. Is it due to male factor? We’ve had some clinics assume we will use it despite no male factor simply because I don’t make many eggs so they view it as a way to ensure higher fertilisation but we’ve always had 100% fertilisation of mature eggs so most specialists tell us absolutely no need for ICSI. We would both be open to it if the clinic gave a good reason that we need it though.
huh? Male infertility in the CHILD from using ICSI? Genetic conditions caused by ICSI process and not the parents genetics? I have saw no evidence of this at all anywhere? how could that even be possible from sperm selection process?
I have had 6 rounds of ICSI and this is not a thing so I just want to make that VERY clear in case anyone else reads this post that this has never been mentioned by any of the amazing consultants I’ve had over the 7 years of treatment and I am going to trust them over something your husband has potentially randomly misinterpreted online? I have a perfectly healthy son from ICSI and another baby on the way. ICSI helps depending on the circumstances so if you want to not consent and decrease your chances in those circumstances that may arise before or after egg collection over something completely unfounded and not based on facts then that’s up to you but personally I would be telling hubby to put google away for a bit 🤪 xx
Hi, I agree with all the above. I've had 3 egg collections with ICSI at 2 different clinics and never been told it can lead to infertility in offspring or genetic problems. In fact I got told that genetic issues come mostly from the maternal side rather than paternal. We had to do ICSI due to make infertility, if you have been recommended to get ICSI I would go ahead with it.
Beginning 2nd cycle...ICSI here I come! 
2nd icsi cycle
Exercise & ICSI
ICSI failed
