Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI) / IMSI
ICSI stands for intracytoplasmic sperm injection. It was a technique that was developed to help couples achieve a pregnancy when the sperm is not optimal. An ICSI cycle is almost the same as an IVF cycle (LINK TO IVF PAGE) except that fertilization is achieved in a different way. IVF stands for in vitro fertilization that means fertilization outside the body. In lay-man's terms this is known as the "Test Tube Baby" technique. The woman is given fertility drugs to produce more than one egg, and when ready, the eggs are collected using a minor surgical procedure. The eggs are stored in the IVF lab and in ICSI, the male partners sperm is injected directly into the egg. If fertilization occurs, the resulting embryos are monitored over a few days to see how they develop. Embryos can be transferred to the womb between day 2 and 6 after collection.
To prepare for ICSI, there are several tests that are done before treatment is started:
TESTS DONE BEFORE ICSI CYCLE:
THE ICSI CYCLE
There are several stages to the ICSI cycle.
- First the ovaries have to be stimulated.
- Then the eggs are collected and the eggs and sperm are prepared in our IVF laboratory.
- If embryos are successfully generated, 1-2 embryos are chosen for transfer. The number of embryos chosen transferred depends on a number of factors.Read more about Number of Embryos to Transfer
- Any good quality embryos remaining may be frozen. At the CRGH we are using a highly successful method of freezing eggs and embryos called vitrification
- Pregnancy rate is greatly influenced by the cause of infertility, your age and whether you have been pregnant before. Our most recent statistics are displayed - See our success rate
- After your ICSI cycle, there are a number of things you must do.Read more about After your ICSI Cycle
- Occasionally complications occur during the ICSI procedure, such as ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome, abandoned cycles and recurrent ICSI failure.
At the CRGH we perform a number of new methods to aid sperm selection. The IMSI (intracytoplasmic morphologically selected sperm injection) technique uses high power magnification
to visualize inside the sperm. This technique can differentiate normal from abnormal sperm, examine the shape of the sperm and the presence of vacuoles. Preliminary data has shown that sperm with an abnormal shape and/or contain vacuoles give a lower fertilization and pregnancy rate. In addition, sperm DNA fragmentation analysis is offered in cases of repeated IVF failure.
