IVF - Deciding how many embryos

Would anyone like to share how they made the decision on how many embryos to put back for IVF? DH and I are on the fence and keep flip-flopping back and forth. We know our chances are greater with two and we'd much rather be blessed with twins than nothing at all (and we also realize we could put in two and only one or none may take). On the other hand, I do not plan to be a SAHM so possibly having two at the same time seems overwhelming. I know we'd make it work - because that's what parents do, but we still can't help but question what to do.

Message edited 8/14/2012 8:45:13 AM.

Re: IVF - Deciding how many embryos

IVF Cycle #1: We decided on putting back 2. The doctor said this was a good choice. If we had twins, we would make it work.

IVF Cycle #2: We decided to put back 3 since our quality was not good round 1. We both figured the chances of all 3 taking were slim to none.

So far, we have put back 5 embryos and have 0 babies....

IVF - Deciding how many embryos

I think it depends on your age, your diagnosis and the quality of your embryos. I was 34 during my first cycle and our diagnosis is male factor. My eggs are fine. Since I was on the "older" side, my RE recommended 2 embryos. I got pregnant with twins but ended up losing them at 17 weeks. My high-risk OB said one twin was not developing and my water broke and I went into labor. Obviously the healthy twin could not survive at 17 weeks.

Second IVF we put back 1 embryo. I was NOT going through that again. It worked. I have a child.

Now onto my third. But back one. Currently in the 2ww.

Obviously, many many ladies go on to have perfectly healthy twins and triplets! My experience was too traumatic and we (me, DH and my Doc) decided that my body can't handle twins.

Message edited 8/14/2012 9:05:36 AM.

Re: IVF - Deciding how many embryos

IVF cycle 1: we decided two. Based on tests, and chances. This ended in a miscarriage, they did see one sac but possibly a second....

FET1: decided to transfer 2- both did not make it

FET 2: 3 remained and decided to transfer all 3- unfortunately one did not make it, so we only transferred the two and my beautiful baby Isabelle Faith- came 9 months later.

Re: IVF - Deciding how many embryos

I'll just preface by saying we are fine with multiples.
For my first IVF, we put back 3 on day 3. It was my first IVF, I didn't have a terrific response to the drugs, and we had nothing left to freeze. Rather than take our chances, we just took the plunge and hoped for the best. Two embryos took, but one split- so I got triplets (but NOT from all 3 embryos). Unfortunately, I had a miscarriage just shy of 8wks...


For my other transfers, we put back 2 and I either had nothing or one take.

I think a lot of the decision is dependent on your age... your issues (quality of the embryos, your lining, etc).

Based on all the factors involved, the best people to make this decision is you, your dh, and your doctor!!

Re: IVF - Deciding how many embryos

Thank you, everyone, for sharing your stories!

Message edited 8/16/2012 10:52:58 AM.

IVF - Deciding how many embryos

We would have been fine with multiples, but my uterus ruptured last year and my dr felt that it would be too risky to put back 2, so we only did 1. My first IVF cycle failed, I am currently in the 2ww of a FET where we put my last embryo back.

Re: IVF - Deciding how many embryos

We are dealing with severe MFI. I thought it would be "easy" for us to get pregnant using IVF since all my levels and tests have come back normal - I thought once we got around the azoospermia issue, we would be fine. I am 30 and I have been able to produce 20+ eggs each cycle so my RE is still optimistic that we can be successful even with less than ideal frozen sperm.

Your best bet is to see how the embryos progress and then make your decision. For me, I knew I would kick myself if I only put one back and it didn't work.

Re: IVF - Deciding how many embryos

Message edited 8/16/2012 10:53:22 AM.

IVF - Deciding how many embryos

We put back 2. We would have been fine with twins. Both implanted but only one became our baby, the other stayed an empty sac. Because of this experience I always recommend putting back two. My embryos were the highest grade and they were day 5 blasts. Of the two we put back, one was normal and one was most likely abnormal (due to the fact that it implanted but never grew). There's no way to tell on the outside which will be the normal ones so IMO it's worth the risk of twins.

We have 8 frosties and if we have to do FETs to get pregnant next time around (Im still holding on to a shred of hope that I can get knocked up the old fashioned way) I would still put back two.

Re: IVF - Deciding how many embryos

we have decided to put back two. two for the price of one!
but seriously, we are more than OK with having twins, im actually hoping for it.

IVF - Deciding how many embryos

With IVF #1 we decided to put one back..it was a hatching blast and we thought it was a great quality embryo...the dr. suggested only putting one back as well...we wanted to try and avoid multiples and since we are both young the chances were greater...we ended up with a BFN...now with FET #1 we decided to put back 2 since they are frozen and it will increase our chances of one implanting...it really is stressful but it all depends on your age and quality of embryos...but even when all aspects are perfect you still may not have any implant even if you do put 2 back.

Re: IVF - Deciding how many embryos

DH and I wanted twins- there was no question about putting back 1 or 2. We even joked with the doctor about putting back three (which gave him a mini heart attack each time lol). This is our first baby so we were prepared for anything. We put back two grade A's and both took. 21 weeks pregnant.

Re: IVF - Deciding how many embryos

Thank you again for all of the responses. Hearing all the different trains of thought is really helpful.

One question I forgot to ask that would have been helpful - did you do your IVF with ICSI? I see a lot of responses where one embryo wasn't 'good' and didn't take or took and then was lost, I just was wondering if those were with ICSI or not.

Message edited 8/16/2012 10:53:56 AM.

Re: IVF - Deciding how many embryos

IVF - Deciding how many embryos

We did ICSI for MFI and we got a great fert report with it. In regards to your other question, we transferred one embryo for our first IVF bc we had 7 embryos that made it to day 5 and I'm your age and appear to have no issues. We got a BFP but their was no development past 5 wks so for our next cycle we are planning to transfer 2 bc we just want better chances for success. Good luck with whatever decision you make

Re: IVF - Deciding how many embryos

Re: IVF - Deciding how many embryos

Re: IVF - Deciding how many embryos

We did ICSI with sperm that was frozen AFTER my DH's cancer diagnosis, but before his chemotherapy. Although my doctor will not flat out say it to me, he has kinda admitted that for some people - sperm after cancer (even without chemo) may not be of the best quality... I sometimes wonder if by using ICSI there is no natural selection process so some sperm that typically would not fertilize an egg is able to.

My RE keeps telling me embryo quality falls into the "who knows category." I want to switch REs - I want a realist optimist, not a hopeless optimist, but by me there are only two options and one doesn't take our insurance. We may look into trying someone in NYC next year.

Message edited 8/14/2012 12:12:10 PM.

Re: IVF - Deciding how many embryos

Dh and I were more than happy about the possibility of twins

We knew putting back 2 would increase our chances and we figured after all we had been through to just go for it lol

They did ICSI on all of them even with no mf issue and we put back 2 with the best quality and luckily for us they both took and now we r 23 weeks pregnant with twins

I think it is a personal decison and no right or wrong answer,it is what u r comfortable with

Good luck!

Re: IVF - Deciding how many embryos

Posted by PennyCat

Posted by FlowerWife

even perfect quality and genetically sound embryos dont always take, that's what makes the process luck based and not ONLY science based.

Seriously... it AMAZES me that people get pregnant everyday without IVF...PGD... etc. etc. etc.

Message edited 8/16/2012 11:07:15 AM.

IVF - Deciding how many embryos

We did not do ICSI since we did not have a MF...we will next time since we only had a 30% fertilization rate which is well below average.

Re: IVF - Deciding how many embryos

We are unexplained. I was told we had a 50/50 chance of getting pregnant with IVF (I actually said that's it to my RE?? and she said thats the best there is and many people would love those odds) and if we put 2 back a 30% chance of multiples.

We discussed this together and at length with my RE. We were ok with twins knowing a twin pregnancy can be tough, etc. I figured I had to cross so many hurdles that I was actually shocked when they both took!!!

I was 31 when I had my transfer and was pretty healthy, very lucky that I had an unventful pregnancy and have 9 month old . I'm not gonna lie. I feel very blessed but they are a lot of work and a twin pregnancy is a bit scary with all the risks.

We had half our eggs naturally fertilize and the other half were icsi'd. Icsi we had a 100% fert rate and on our own we had a 60% fert rate. My sons came from 1 embryo icsi'd and the other that fertilized on its own (they were the best 2 quality embies).

I have 6 frozen and we are thinking of doing an FET for 1 more. That being said I would only transfer 1 this go around.

GL!

Re: IVF - Deciding how many embryos

At first, when it seemed like this would be easier, we were hoping against twins. I still put 2 back that first time because it was more important to me to get pregnant than it was to avoid twins. They transferred 2 early blasts. Nothing stuck.

When I did IVF again it was after 2 back-to-back attempts in which the first cycle was canceled for poor response. I was exhausted. I sort of wanted to put back 3 because I was so devastated by the 2 previous failures. My doctor convinced me to go with 2 because they embryos were picture perfect. We were fully open to twins at that point, maybe even hoping for them but still a little scared of the idea.

This time, my doctor wanted to put back 2 for the same reason as before: perfect embryos. We went against their advice and put back 3. After the other failures, we are praying for twins. If I get pregnant this time, I don't know if I'll ever get pregnant again because I have response and egg quality issues.

Only time will tell, but so far, we put back 4 good to great embryos and had zero implant.

IVF - Deciding how many embryos

do two.

i did two- and one split and i was carrying triplets! then 8 weeks we had one vanish. o ended up having twins and its the most wonderful thing ever.....