Curious about what the in vitro fertilization process is really like from A to Z? Dr. Rachel McConnell, a board certified OB/Gyn and Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility specialist at Nevada Fertility C.A.R.E.S. in Las Vegas, explains what it is really like to go through the process.
When a woman comes in for in vitro fertilization (IVF), she can expect to need several office visits and a series of ultrasounds and blood draws right from the start. And that is just the monitoring stage of the process. So IVF in general is time-consuming, and women should be prepared for that going in.
From the beginning, we need to make sure that this woman who is seeking out IVF treatments is healthy, and to do that we have to do a blood test and ultrasounds to find out what specifically is going on and what is preventing her from getting pregnant through intercourse. What we are trying to do is to make sure that there is follicular growth going on, and that her hormones are coinciding to that follicular growth. Obviously doing that takes time, which is why any woman considering IVF needs to make sure she has time in her schedule for this process before we begin.
From there, the woman can expect that we will need to do an egg retrieval. At the time of her retrieval, she can usually remain conscious thanks to the conscious sedation that is given to the average patient. And the retrieval procedure itself may last anywhere from 15 to 30 minutes.
In the majority of cases, patients who have gone through this procedure will need to wait for approximately 30 minutes to an hour before they can go home, depending on how they recover from the conscious sedation we put them under during the procedure itself.
Patients after that procedure typically will go home 30 minutes to an hour depending on how they recover from the sedation. And then typically they will do whatever they want for the next three to five days after that.
Once the patient has the embryo transfer, she will want to take a little bit of time off, maybe for the next three to five days. During that time, we ask the patients to just sort of relax around their home and avoid any excessive activities or exercise.
Finally, 10 days after that is when we typically would do the patient’s first quantitative pregnancy test. If the pregnancy test is positive, then we will repeat the quantitative pregnancy test 48 hours later just to be sure she is pregnant, and so that we can make sure that her hormonal levels are increasing as they should be.
If that is the case, and her hormonal levels are increasing appropriately, then we will schedule an appointment for the woman’s first pregnancy ultrasound just two weeks after that.
So that is how the general process of IVF, on the mother’s part, goes from start to finish.
The information in the article is not intended to substitute for the medical expertise and advice of your healthcare provider. We encourage you to discuss any decisions about treatment or care with an appropriate healthcare provider.
