Fertilizing

Fertilizing your eggs and growing embryos:

The embryology team will utilize a highly specialized glass needle to inject a single normal sperm into each mature egg under the guidance of a state-of-the-art microscope. The embryos will then be monitored continuously for 5 to 6 days..

Once the eggs have been collected, they are combined with sperm in the IVF laboratory within a period of 2-4 hours following the egg retrieval. If you have a male partner, sperm will be produced by him through masturbation.
The ICSI method is the standard procedure to facilitate fertilization, as it has been proven to dramatically increase the success rate.

ICSI is a process whereby a glass pipette, which is finer than a human hair, is used to collect a single sperm and inject it into the cytoplasm of the egg cell. The ICSI method is performed with the assistance of a specialized microscope, which is equipped with a range of enlargement lenses.

Approximately 18-24 hours after the egg and sperm come together, the genetic material of both the female and male combine to form the zygote (fertilized egg) and fertilization is confirmed the morning after your egg retrieval. On average, approximately 70-90% of mature eggs are fertilized during IVF.

Following the egg retrieval and IVF procedure, your team will contact you to provide an update on the number of fertilized eggs that have developed into zygotes. In an incubator (a device used in IVF laboratories that simulates the temperature, oxygen, carbon dioxide, and nutrient levels in the fallopian tubes and uterus) the zygote will undergo daily growth and development, as if it were in a natural environment. The cells of the zygote divide daily..

Five Days after the egg retrieval, the embryo(s) have grown significantly and has divided (grown) to a collection of hundreds of cells and becomes the most advanced stage embryo called a blastocyst. On day 5 after egg retrieval and fertilization, the embryo can be transferred into your uterus (fresh embryo transfer) or, they may undergo genetic testing (preimplantation genetic testing, PGT) and freezing for future transfer.

Next step: 6. Embryo Transfer