OTHER FEMALE & MALE FERTILITY TREATMENTS
New Hope Fertility Center provides the full range of fertility related procedures using the most advanced technology and science possible. We are committed to remaining the most hi-tech & scientifically advanced fertility center in the tri-state area. Below you will find a list of the procedures we employ during assisted reproduction, and the advanced treatments & surgeries we can provide to men and women requiring repair of their reproductive systems.
Advanced Fertility Treatments - Female & Male Fertility Treatments
Intrauterine Insemination (IUI)
Commonly known as artificial insemination, intrauterine insemination (IUI) is traditionally the intermediate step in infertility treatment before a course of IVF is attempted. IUI involves placing washed sperm (sperm separated from the naturally accompanying seminal plasma) into a very thin flexible catheter, which is inserted through the woman's cervix and then injected into the uterus. Most women find IUI to be fairly painless, similar to having a pap smear, though there can be some cramping afterward. Ideally an IUI should be performed immediately after ovulation (particularly when treating male factor infertility) or within six hours either side of ovulation. IUI success rates are reported to be 6% or less and as high as 26% per cycle. More recent studies have found that IUI and natural intercourse produce similar birth rates, which severely undermines IUI as a standard assisted fertility technique. For this reason, at New Hope Fertility Clinic, should timed intercourse fail, we proceed straight to IVF, cutting out the time and expense of IUI. Even when using donor sperm, it is recommended that IVF be attempted immediately instead of IUI.
In Vitro Oocyte (egg) Maturation (IVM)
In Vitro Oocyte Maturation (IVM) permits the use of immature eggs in IVF. It involves retrieving eggs that have not fully matured inside a woman's ovaries during her menstrual cycle and during an IVF cycle, and maturing those eggs in a maturation medium in our labs. While not all eggs will mature, IVM increases a woman’s chance for pregnancy with these additional eggs that do ultimately mature.
Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI)
Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI) is a laboratory procedure to help infertile couples undergoing IVF due to male factor infertility. ICSI, a form of micromanipulation, involves the injection of a single sperm directly into the cytoplasm of a mature egg (oocyte) using a glass needle (pipette). This process increases the likelihood of fertilization when there are abnormalities in the number, quality, or function of the sperm.
Embryo Assisted Hatching
An embryo that has been transferred to the uterus must “hatch” or escape from the Zona Pellucida (the protective shell of cells surrounding the embryo) before it can implant for pregnancy. It has been found that in certain conditions the Zona Pellucida is thickened, making hatching difficult. The technique of Assisted Hatching has been developed to enhance implantation during the hatching process. With Assisted Hatching, a computer-assisted laser is used to make a tiny opening in the Zona Pellucida so that the mass of cells inside the embryo can more easily escape. Assisted Hatching is suggested in all situations where the Zona Pellucida is thickened, for example in older women, and following IVM and cryopreservation. Embryos may be cultured for 2-5 days before embryo transfer, based on the patient’s clinical history. This culturing of embryos allows the best quality embryos to be selected for transfer into the uterus.
Blastocyst Culturing & Embryo Selection
When an embryo has been cultured for five days (as 70% of our embryos are), it reaches what we call the "blastocyst" stage. The process of embryo transfer on Day 5 is called blastocyst culturing and it offers the advantage of what we refer to as “embryo selection.“ The implantation rate of blastocyst transfer is greater than a transfer of Day 2 or 3 embryos. But only 20-50 percent of Day 2 embryos can develop in vitro to Day 5, no matter how perfect the in vitro culture system. In culturing until the blastocyst stage, then, there is a potential loss of what could have been viable embryos if implanted earlier, but those that make it to the blastocyst stage have a greater chance of making it to live birth. Embryo selection then has nothing to do with selecting embryos to produce babies with specific traits, but rather refers to the process of implanting older, more viable embryos—those that have been “selected” by their ability to survive in vitro to the blastocyst stage. While most of our embryos are cultured to Day 5, and, therefore, do undergo blastocyst culturing and embryo selection, the decision of how long to culture the embryos is based on the recommendation of your doctor, taking into account your clinical history.
Frozen Embryo Transfer
Unless our patients request otherwise, we at New Hope Fertility Center promote single-embryo transfers to reduce the risks associated with twins and multiple births. This means often times women have their surplus embryos (remaining after embryo transfer) frozen using our Vitrification freezing method. Other times, couples or single women wishing to plan ahead and preserve their fertility or preserve embryos for later on may also freeze embryos for future use when they wish to start a family.
The Frozen Embryo Transfer procedure is simple. It involves thawing, and then transferring the embryo into a woman's uterus for hopeful pregnancy. Embryos are transferred to the uterus through a catheter. This procedure is much like a pap smear, does not require any anesthesia, and is usually painless. The embryos are placed in a small amount of fluid inside the catheter, which is passed through the cervix at the time of a speculum examination. At New Hope Fertility Center we ordinarily perform single-embryo transfer, implanting only one per cycle (and thereby reducing the health risks associated with multiple births), unless the patient requests otherwise.
Ovarian Tissue Transfer
Ovarian Tissue Transfer involves removing the ovary of one woman, microsurgically dissecting the tissue, and subsequently transplanting it into another woman. This procedure is often considered a donor procedure, whereby an infertile woman receives the ovarian tissue of a fertile woman. In this case, it is a preferable alternative to egg donation because ovarian tissue has potentially thousands of eggs and the tissue continues to function as a normal healthy ovary in the recipient's body long after transfer, so it offers recipients multiple chances at pregnancy as compared with single chance offered by egg donation.
Ovarian Tissue Transfer also occurs when a woman has elected to freeze her own ovarian reserve and then have it transferred back when she is ready to have a child. That is, instead of freezing individual eggs, the patient has the entire ovarian reserve frozen. This procedure is preferable to egg freezing because one egg-freezing cycle generally preserves 1-5 quality eggs, whereas Ovarian Tissue Transfer freezes tens, to hundreds, to thousands of eggs, depending on the woman. Learn more…
Cryopreservation using Vitrification
New Hope Fertility Center uses the newest method, Vitrification, for freezing eggs, sperm, embryos, and ovarian tissue. Vitrification uses a flash freezing method that prevents the formation of ice crystals, which can damage the egg, sperm, embryo, or ovarian tissue. Survival rates during the thawing process are 98% for Vitrification versus 55% when the traditional slow-dunk method is used. Learn more…
Reproductive Treatments & Surgeries
Infertility is often caused by mechanical issues that can be corrected through treatments or surgeries for both men and women. In fact, up to 34% of female infertility cases are caused by mechanical or structural issues with the reproductive system. During the initial consultation you and your fertility care team will determine if the cause of your infertility is structural and, then, together you will decide on a treatment plan.
New Hope fertility specialists provide the following procedures and surgeries:
Female Fertility Treatments |
Female Fertility Treatments |
| Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) Uterine Fibroids Ovarian Cysts Endometriosis |
Hysteroscopy – diagnostic and operative Laparotomy Hydrosalpinx Removal Tubal Microsurgery (Laparoscopic Tubal Reanastomocis) Submucous Resection of Fibroids Ovary Transplantation Laparoscopy – diagnostic and operative Fallopian Tube Sterilization Reversal (Reanastomosis) Tubal Cannulation Gynecologic Laser Surgery Laparoscopic Myomectomy |
Male Fertility Treatments |
Male Fertility Treatments |
| Fertility Evaluation Fertility History Physical Exam Blood Testing STD's Semen Analysis -assessment of sperm count (number per millimeter), motility (movement), morphology (shape), analysis of the thickness of the ejaculate and the sperms ability to liquefy. |
Vasectomy Reversal (MRV) Sperm Aspiration for ICSI Testicular Sperm Aspiration Testicular Biopsy Microsurgical Epididymal Sperm Aspiration (MESA) Testicular Sperm Extraction (TESE) |