Pre-implantation Genetic Screening is indeed an exciting technology that is very much increasing the success rates of IVF.
What is it all about and is it right for you?
The hardest part is the journey one makes as far as infertility is concerned.
One is at times asked to try out Pre-implantation Genetic Screening of the embryos before moving forward with the embryo transfer. Usually one feels that one has to incur high costs, but one does become aware of the impact of PGS on an IVF cycle.
What is Pre-implantation Genetic Screen?
Pre-implantation genetic screening or PGS is acknowledged as the genetic evaluation of an embryo. The Cape Fertility Clinic does explain it as the ability to be able to detect chromosome abnormalities or chromosomal rearrangements prior to embryo transfer.
In simpler terms, it is a very highly specialized procedure performed by an embryologist which analyses the genetic material of a Day 5 or Day 6 old embryo. The embryologist microscopically does take some DNA material from the embryo and tests it for genetic abnormalities or hopefully ‘normalities’. Every egg and every sperm does carry 23 chromosomes, which together will in all probability create an embryo with 46 chromosomes. The PGS test is indeed searching for the occurrence of these 46 chromosomes. If there are less or more chromosomes it would rather result in miscarriage or birth defects of a fetus.
Why is PGS useful?
PGS does allow the doctors and embryologists the opportunity to choose the better embryos for embryo transfer. It also does make sure that the embryos being transferred are chromosomally normal and do not carry abnormalities or too few chromosomes. The specialists do suggest that PGS be indeed strongly considered by older women (over 35) or couples who have had repeated failed IVF cycles previously.
Why PGS?
A staggering 70% of miscarriages in early pregnancy are as a result of chromosomal abnormalities. Without PGS one will not know beforehand if such abnormalities do exist or not. IVF cycles do not include PGS and embryos are chosen primarily based on their visual quality, which in fact cannot distinguish chromosomally normal embryos from abnormal ones. IVF cycles that do include PGS do indeed enable the identification of embryos with normal chromosomes and are more likely to result in a pregnancy that does lead to a healthy baby.
Is there a risk that an embryo can be damaged during PGS?
There are many advances in medicine as one sees off late and how it is improving each year. The focus is upon the risk of damage to the embryo that is very low if one is using a high-quality laboratory for one’s testing.
The biopsy of the embryo is through a process referred to as trophectoderm biopsy. It does take a small number of cells from the trophectoderm (cells that will become the placenta eventually) and does not actually touch cells from the inner cell mass (cells which will become the fetus eventually) which does mean technically the cells that make up the fetus do not get disturbed at all.
Conclusion
It is indeed advisable for any friend or women going through IVF to consider PGS in order to improve one’s chances of a pregnancy. One does worry no doubt. There is no guarantee to have a baby. A doctor cannot provide 100% assurance that one would.
Best IVF Clinic in Hyderabad is a fertility clinic where women undergoing treatment for infertility can find support from the fertility specialists to overcome the stress and anxiety factors. This can help in the process of getting pregnant, especially when it is through the assisted procedures.
