Natural cycle IVF (in vitro fertilisation) - IVF Process Step By Step

Whereas 'standard' IVF uses special reproductive hormones to encourage several eggs to develop in the woman’s ovaries at one time, ‘natural cycle’ IVF is IVF process without the use of additional hormones.

As natural cycle IVF follows the standard menstrual cycle, usually only one egg is obtained. Once the egg is collected, it follows the same fertilisation, development and transfer procedure as conventional (stimulated) IVF.

The entire process of IVF is based on your menstrual cycle and takes 30 days. Patients having natural cycle IVF do not require stimulation medication and have almost no chance of multiple pregnancies .

Furthermore, if your IVF treatment is unsuccessful, you can try again sooner than conventional (stimulated) IVF if you wish.

Natural cycle IVF is usually used for women where medication is either unlikely to help in recruiting a higher number of eggs (clinically known as a ‘poor ovarian reserve’) or if there is a risk of over-stimulation as a result of the medication (known as ‘ovarian hyper-stimulation syndrome’ (OHSS)).

Approximately 57% of patients of all ages undergoing natural IVF cycles will reach the stage of embryo transfer; however live birth rates are lower than in conventional (stimulated) IVF.