Since IVF is one of the most effective and popular fertility treatments in Chandigarh, many of our patients wonder, “Is IVF 100% successful in the first attempt?’ The truth is, there are many factors involved in the success and failure of IVF treatment. While it’s natural to hope for success right away, the truth is that IVF success depends on many factors, some of which are out of your control.
In this blog, we discuss the success rates of IVF treatment in one attempt vs. multiple attempts and the factors that affect its success.
What is IVF Treatment?
In vitro fertilization (IVF) is a fertility procedure that helps men and women with infertility issues conceive a child. It is one of the most successful fertility treatments in the world and is used to treat a wide variety of infertility issues, including unexplained infertility.
In IVF, eggs and sperm are collected from the couple or from a donor when needed. In the lab, the eggs are placed with sperm in a culture dish, allowing fertilization to occur naturally or through techniques like ICSI. The embryos are then observed as they develop from the zygote stage to the blastocyst stage.
Your fertility specialist then chooses the healthiest embryo and transfers it to the uterus of the patient or a surrogate.
Is IVF 100% Successful?
So, is IVF 100% successful in the first attempt? Unfortunately, no. The success of IVF treatment relies on factors like egg and sperm quality, uterine receptivity, age, and more. Certain conditions like endometriosis, PCOS, or diminished ovarian reserve (DOR) can also affect your success rate with IVF.
IVF is an effective medical treatment with high chances of success, but success is not always a guaranteed outcome. Just like any other medical procedure, it can also fail sometimes. Even couples with minor fertility issues may not see success on their first cycle.
Do Multiple Attempts Increase IVF Success?
Many couples don’t have success on their first IVF attempt. Don’t worry, this is quite common. Statistically, you are likely to have better success the second time, as your fertility specialists can adjust your medication, stimulation, protocols, and more based on everything they’ve learned from your first attempt.
Instead of IVF, your doctor may recommend switching to a slightly more advanced technique like ICSI or PICSI. These specialized techniques can increase your chances of success.
Typically, younger women require fewer cycles compared to older women. While it’s not guaranteed, the cumulative success rate at Bloom IVF increases with each additional cycle and goes up to 85% for women under 30. Most couples achieve pregnancy within three IVF cycles.
What are the Factors that Affect IVF Success?
The success of IVF treatment depends on many factors. Some of the key factors include :
Egg Quality and Quantity
The quality of your eggs is a huge factor in the success of your IVF treatment. The better the quality of your eggs, the higher your chances of success. Poor-quality eggs increase the risk of miscarriage, lower the rate of fertilization, affect embryo development, and cause birth defects in the offspring.
In IVF treatment, ovarian stimulation increases the number of mature eggs you produce. The higher the number of eggs, the greater your chances of success with IVF. So along with egg quality, egg quantity is very important too.
Age
The ideal age for IVF treatment is late 20s to early 30s. Choosing IVF at an older age comes with its own set of risks.
Advanced maternal age can increase the chances of miscarriage and failed IVF attempts. The quality and quantity of eggs decrease, which affects the IVF success rate. It also increases the chances of pregnancy complications like pre-eclampsia, gestational diabetes, and genetic conditions like Down syndrome.
Advanced paternal age can severely decrease sperm quality and quantity. It also increases the rate of DNA fragmentation in the sperm, which increases the risk of the child being born with chromosomal defects.
Poor Ovarian Response
The ovaries of some women do not respond well to ovarian stimulation. This means that their ovaries will create fewer mature eggs, which can directly affect your odds of IVF success.
If your ovaries do not respond well to the medications and injections during IVF, an IVF specialist can adjust their dosage and frequency to make the next IVF cycle successful.
Uterine Receptivity
A receptive endometrium is essential to the IVF process. If your uterine lining isn’t receptive, the embryo won’t be able to implant and grow in your uterus. Thus, even if all factors are conducive, poor uterine receptivity will hinder the success of your IVF cycle.
Your uterine lining needs to thicken properly before embryo transfer to create the ideal environment for the embryo’s growth and development. It cannot be too thin or too thick.
Sperm Quality And Quantity
The egg is only one half of the equation. The other half, the sperm, is equally important.
Sperm is classified on the basis of shape (morphology), speed (motility), and count. An infertile male produces sperm with poor shape and mobility, which causes problems in fertilization and increases the chance of birth defects.
Having enough healthy sperm can also boost IVF success rates by a lot.
Chromosomal Abnormalities
Not all embryos are created equal. Some of the resulting embryos will be healthy, while the others might have abnormalities like the incorrect number of chromosomes. Such embryos are considered ‘aneuploid’ and can increase the risk of miscarriage or genetic conditions.
When an embryologist selects embryos for transfer, they observe all the developed embryos under a microscope and pick the one that ‘looks’ the best. Only 15–40% of your embryos are usually ‘euploid’ or normal. It is not possible to tell which embryos are chromosomally normal by only observing them.
PGT (preimplantation genetic testing) tests the embryos for aneuploidy, which rapidly increases the success rate of your IVF attempt by selecting only genetically normal, healthy embryos.
Lifestyle Choices
Your lifestyle choices can make or break the success of your IVF treatment.
Drinking alcohol, smoking, and overconsumption of caffeine are all associated with a decrease in fertility. Obesity and a sedentary lifestyle also contribute to infertility in both men and women.
Being underweight and not consuming enough food can also impact fertility. You may get poor results with IVF if your diet is not giving you enough vitamins and minerals. Follow a healthy, balanced diet and make moderate exercise a part of your lifestyle.
Clinic Reputation
Choosing the right IVF clinic is one of the most important decisions you can make to improve your chances of success. A highly rated clinic with skilled and compassionate staff can provide you with advanced medical treatments and access to cutting-edge medical infrastructure.
Along with success rates, make a note of the clinic’s patient satisfaction. A top clinic like Bloom IVF offers IVF treatment at affordable rates without compromising on patient care and quality of treatment.
What to Do After IVF Failure?
We understand that IVF failure can feel devastating, but it’s not the end of your fertility journey. Here’s what you can do if IVF fails:
- Consult your fertility specialist and discuss what went wrong and which protocols you can implement in the future.
- Get a second opinion from a renowned fertility clinic like Bloom IVF.
- Consider undergoing different treatments like ICSI or IVF with donor gametes.
- Make lifestyle changes like exercising regularly and giving up habits like smoking and drinking.
Many patients end up feeling disappointed when their first IVF cycle fails. IVF success isn’t guaranteed on the first attempt, so we recommend that you be emotionally prepared for more than one cycle.
At Bloom IVF, we provide personalized treatment protocols to each patient to maximize the chances of success. Our personalized care and warmth make us the very best IVF center in chandigarh.