u/Zestyclose-Wheel1640

Has anyone ever had an embryo graded as 4db that actually made it?

My clinic cultures embryos to day 7. On day 6 one of them was graded as a 4db blast. They said it’s unlikely to make it and they monitored it till today (day 7). The grading of d signifies its degenerating and they said it will be discarded. I am just not sure if I should have pressed further or not. I did ask if it could just be frozen and they said no. Only c graded blasts and above can be frozen/biopsied. (I also lost 2 embryos that were stuck at cell stage 3 by day 5/6).

I did have some other blasts that made it through to biopsy/freeze so I’m holding out hope for those but given I don’t make that many, i am just wondering if I could have handled that differently.

Disclaimer- I have a low amh and afc for my age but have been told by multiple doctors this should not impact my ability to get pregnant as I’m ovulating consistently with very regular cycles. I do have a few of the non obvious symptoms of endo but all the ultrasounds and hormonal bloods I’ve had with my fertility clinic (privately I’m pursuing ivf) have never detected an issue so it’s never been brought up as an issue.
Saying that, I’ve seen a lot of people in my position who later find out they had silent endo and only discover it after multiple implantation failures or taking endo specific tests. I obviously don’t want to get as far as a failed transfer to find that out. There is also a link between issues like DOR and endo so I think it’s sensible to rule it out.

Are there any specialists anyone recommends ideally in London who deal with endo or infertility specifically? I’d be keen to proactively look into getting an mri/specialist tvus or similar to rule out specific causes of infertility like endo. I should be able to claim infertility investigations through my insurance fortunately.

I’ve checked davor jurkovic but his waitlist is extremely long (even if going privately).

Hi, I’m on a short ivf cycle with menopur and buserelin (I have dor). On day 8 of stims my lining was at a healthy 8mm and 2 days later we measured and it seems to have decreased to 4.1mm!! What can possibly cause this? Doctor had no idea. She’s taken my LH and estrogen levels but we suspect they will come back fine.

I know a small variation can be normal but from 8mm to 4mm seems crazy. Anyone have any clues what can cause this? Was originally planning a fresh transfer this cycle but that may have to change now

Hi, so I’ve heard that for some icb areas, the number of private ivf tries you have is deducted from the number of NHS tries you are eligible for. For north London icb, I would normally be eligible for 3 rounds but due to my referral taking almost 8 months and having low ovarian reserve, I’ve been pursuing private ivf (one round so far, no euploids yet).

The wording of the policy for north east London mentions “treatment will not be funded for patients under 40 years old who have previously had three fresh cycles of ivf, included privately funded cycles. This means if a patient has had one previous fresh ivf cycle, up to two NHS funded full cycles will be funded”
Elsewhere ‘fresh ivf cycle’ is defined as stims plus fresh transfer.

Does anyone know, does that mean only private tries with a fresh transfer are deducted from the total amount or even the fact I’ve done 1 egg retrieval with no transfer still counts and therefore the NHs will only fund one round. (Actually likely one given I’m now 39)

For context, I have low ovarian reserve and am with lister Portland. Overall, I find them a great clinic - friendly, efficient. The only thing I find lacking is that there isn’t really an active undertaking in understanding the whole picture - they have my AMH, AFC, estrogen and progesterone levels but that’s about it. There was never a recommendation for a hsg or hycosy, or looking at an overall blood panel and recommending supplements based on what I’m lacking. Apart from folic acid, they haven’t actively recommended any additional supplementation- coq10, vitamin D, omega etc. All the supplements I take, I take based on research I’ve found and what’s recommended here (obviously I make sure they don’t have a problem with what I’m taking but they weren’t initially suggested to me by my clinic).

I’ve read a few international examples here where clinics have looked at full blood panels and really tailored supplements and protocols to their clients and wondering if such an experience exists here in London? I’m not sure if I am expecting too much but I wonder if there’s a more personal experience where someone looks at the overall issue holistically. I.e all the key tests to check there’s no other reason I’m struggling to conceive but also recommendations for the future in terms of supplements that could help.

I’m currently debating between whether to pgta test or not for my second round of ivf. For context, I’m 38, normal fsh, amh 0.6 but my afc count is only between 2-4. In my first ivf cycle we retrieved 2 eggs and both reached blast but failed pgta testing as they were aneuploid. One was complex abnormal and another was abnormal with monosomy +22. I was told by the doctor this second one probably would have implanted only to miscarry later on.

With so few eggs collected, I’m debating trying a fresh transfer and testing whatever remains. If it fails to implant, then for me personally, I would be no more emotionally invested than I am every month but would feel like I gave it my best shot. My hesitation is around the chance of miscarriage and losing weeks or possibly months. I’ve read several posts on here about chemicals and miscarriages and my heart really goes out to those people.

Which leads me to the question, of aneuploid or untested transfers that do implant (for women in their late 30s) and miscarry, are there stats or studies that indicate *when* a pregnancy fails/ miscarries? Essentially is there a breakdown of the risk at each stage of pregnancy? I.e the rates at 5 weeks/6 weeks/10 weeks etc?

Understanding this, would help inform my decision

- We know that aneuploids generally have shown less than 1% chance of a live birth but am I right in understanding 90% of the time these will just fail to implant in the first place?
- Of embryos that are untested, are there any stats on when miscarriage occurs? (Particularly for over 38s). I.e I’ve read that ivf untested miscarriage rates for my age are around 30% but for me, a miscarriage at 3 weeks vs 10 would impact me quite differently
- In contrast, I understand euploid implantation success rates are around 65% but from looking at these forums, miscarriage rate can still be as high as 10% (after a positive pregnancy test).

Just had a hycosy done privately today and wow was it painful. They had trouble getting the catheter through and had to reinsert and check with the speculum and ultrasound wand three times and pinched and pulled at my cervix to straighten it up.

After discussing possibly giving me water to fill my bladder and doing an ultrasound from above (stomach area) to help guide it through, they managed to get it through after about 45 minutes/1hr. Confirmed both my tubes are open and they said there is no reason I shouldn’t be able to conceive but I was in such a daze, I didn’t ask more questions.

Anyone else had issues with getting a catheter through? Now I’m researching it, should I have asked about cervical stenosis or scarring?

I am sure they would have mentioned it but I assume as long as blood can exit fine during my period, then sperm can always get through.

I’m an experienced and avid cook - literally hosting meals for friends every other weekend. Want to up my kitchen game and invest in some Japanese knives. Aesthetics are just as important as performance. Interested in a hammered blade and wa-handle

I’m 38(about to turn 39) with DOR. AFC only 2-5. I just completed my first retrieval where the only two eggs retrieved fertilized and resulted in blasts, grade BB and grade BC.

Pgt-a tested both and both came back aneuploid:
One abnormal with trisomy 19 and 22
Second was complex abnormal with monosomy (2,4,19,21,22)

I tested based on doctor recommendation because of my age but looking on here there’s so much conflicting feeling about testing and for someone with DOR it’s generally advised to just skip testing. I’m also so interested in the fact that some embryos have potential to self correct.

Given there isn’t really a pattern with my aneuploids and trisomies 19 and 22 seem like more spontaneous errors as opposed to age related, I’m debating on going the fresh transfer/no testing route.

Anyone here gone for both and had a total change of luck going from making just aneuploids to skipping the testing and having a successful pregnancy/birth?

My clinic doesn’t transfer aneuploids (uk based), so once they are tested as aneuploid, they are gone.

Hi,
Looking for some advice on protocols or even supplements and just general support as I just don’t know what to do now. I am 38, have an amh of 0.6 (last tested in Jan) and an AFC between 2-4 follicles. My FSH is weirdly in normal limits and I recruit follicles early and ovulate on day 10-11 usually on a 25 day cycle.

After a couple of unsuccessful timed cycles, i just completed one round of ivf where I only retrieved from 2 follicles. We had hope as both eggs retrieved were fertilized and both reached blastocyst - BB and BC grade. They were both sent for PGT-A testing but unfortunately found out today that both were tested as abnormal (extra/missing chromosomes).

I know it’s a complete russian roulette and each cycle varies and for those with low reserve , we just have to keep trying but I’m wondering if there’s anything I can do in my supplement regime or possible next ivf protocol that could help with my egg quality and i plan to just try again?

My protocol:
Prior cycle start with synarel/Naferelin to shut down ovaries from day 11 (doctor suggested starting this early because my body recruits follicles very quickly)
After my period came, my ovaries still hadn’t shut down fully until day CD 6.
Started 225 IU dose of menopur from day 6
At baseline, I started with 5 follicles but after a week that dropped to 2 follicles. We increased my menopur to 300iu shortly thereafter.
I triggered with 5000iu zivafert on day 12 of stims and had egg collection on day 14 of stims

My supplements:
200mg ubiquinol (I feel I could increase this)
Wild nutrition fertility supplements which contains the recommended 400ug of Folate
1000iu vitamin D
1280mg omega 3

Am I missing anything? Any protocols better than others for similar stats?

I’m on synarel /Naferelin for down regulation since cycle day 11. I have shorter 25 day cycles with ovulation on day 11. On the day I started it, I had already had an LH spike and ovulated a day later than usual on cd12.

Clinic said it should induce period to come earlier but so far I’m on cycle day 22 and no period yet. Had a scan yesterday to check how things were going and my corpus luteum from ovulation was still big and glowing with rings of fire. My bbt (temp) is still high suggesting my progesterone is still doing its thing.

Given I’ve been on this now 12 days, I feel like it’s not working?!

Not to mention the bottle says 60 sprays and I’ve pumped approx 46 (2 sprays twice a day) and I still have over half the bottle left so I’m worried I’ve done something wrong (I definitely press it down fully but occasionally I get liquid come out esp on the left nostril which I find harder to administer).

Anyone had issues with it taking longer to down regulate etc?