Single Embryo Transfer

Infertility medicine is slowly moving towards encouraging most woman to transfer a single embryo during IVF. Patients are often resistant for fear of reducing their odds of having a family. Our guests will be reproductive endocrinologist Dr. Ron Feinberg with IVF Medical Director at Reproductive Associates of Delaware; and embryologist Dr. Michael Tucker with Georgia Reproductive Specialists.

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Hit the Highlights
  • The ASRM suggested guideline or policy about how many embryos to transfer based roughly on a woman’s age.
  • Who should consider single embryo transfer?
  • Is single embryo transfer recommended for women over 40?
  • Is single embryo transfer recommended for couples that have male factor infertility and have used intercytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI)?
  • What are the success rates for single embryo transfers? Fresh cycle? Frozen cycle?
  • If you are only going to transfer one embryo is it better to transfer a 5 day old blastocyst or a 3 day old embryo?
  • Is it better to freeze (cryopreserve) embryos at 3 days or 5 days?
  • It has seemed in the past that selecting the best embryo to transfer with the highest chance of implantation and growth is more art than science. Has progress been made in this area?
  • How long can embryos be successfully grown in vitro? How long can embryos be grown in the laboratory outside the woman’s uterus?
  • What are the risk of twin pregnancies?
  • Is single embryo transfer (SET) recommended for frozen embryo transfers?
  • Frozen embryo transfer success rates?
  • What is the successful thaw rate for vitrification?
  • How are embryos graded for determining which embryos to transfer?
  • How can we best prepare the endometrium lining to ensure a greater implantation rate during IVF?
  • Why has some research shown that the pregnancy rates and implantation rates is greater for frozen embryo transfer cycle than for fresh embryo transfer cycles?
  • In nature, what developmental stage is the embryo when it exits the fallopian tubes and enters the uterus?