 |
 |
Infertility, IVF, Sperm Freezing ,
Fertility Service (Male/Female) |
|
 |
|
|
 |
|
|
|
Brentwood |
  |
|
Brighton |
| |
|
Chester |
| |
|
Derby |
| |
|
Glasgow |
| |
|
Leicester |
| |
|
Slough |
| |
|
Tunbridge Wells |
| |
|
Woking |
| | |
|
|
| |
|
| Assisted Conception (Fertility
Treatment) |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
There is a range of services regarding
assisted conception, which are described below.
Treatments may vary between hospitals, please
enquire for further details. Programmes are
tailored to patients' individual needs, and all
stages of treatment are fully discussed. Informed
decisions can then be made, and patients will be
aware of what is involved at all stages.
In Vitro Fertilisation (IVF)
IVF
literally means the joining of an egg (oocytes)
and a sperm in a glass container. In IVF the
ovaries are stimulated with specialised fertility
drugs to produce a number of eggs. When mature
these are then collected and mixed with sperm to
try to achieve fertilisation. If this occurs, the
fertilised eggs are then transferred into the
womb.
Gamete Intra Fallopian Transfer
(GIFT)
GIFT eggs are produced in the same
way as for IVF. Once retrieved the eggs and sperm
are placed in the fallopian tube(s). This method
is used when the womans tubes are not blocked.
Ovulation Induction
(OI)
Ovulation Induction is used for women
who are diagnosed as having problems producing
eggs. It is also used for women who have
unexplained infertility.
Ovum Donation
Ovum donation is offered as a treatment
that, after appropriate counselling, may be an
option for women who cannot use their own oocytes.
Ovum donors are women under 35 years of age who
have completed their own families, and who donate
their eggs which are then fertilized by the sperm
from the recipient's husband.
Intra
Uterine Insemination (IUI)
Success rates in
many assisted conception techniques have been
shown to increase when combined with IUI. This
involves selection of the best swimming sperm in a
similar manner to that used for IVF, a small
volume of this sample are passed through a fine
tube into the uterus around the time the egg is
released. The combination of OI and IUI is now the
preferred treatment for unexplained infertility.
Intra Cytoplasmic Sperm Injection
(ICSI)
This is the most successful assisted
fertilisation treatment for male infertility. For
ICSI, IVF is performed on the women (as described
above) and then direct injection of a single sperm
into the centre of each egg is attempted. It is
extremely useful where semen counts are extremely
low.
Donor Insemination
Donor
insemination is a relatively simple and painless
method of treatment where sperm, donated by an
anonymous donor, is placed in either the cervix
(neck of the womb) or directly into the womb. The
latter procedure is called intra-uterine
insemination (IUI).
Where donor semen is
to be used the donors eye, skin and hair colouring
will be carefully matched to the couple. All
donors are screened for sexually transmitted
agents (including HIV) and genetically inherited
diseases, as described in the guidelines issued by
the British Andrology Society.
See also
"Sperm Freezing"
| | |
