Before starting therapeutic measures – such as artificial insemination, also called in vitro fertilization (IVF) – the following prerequisites must be fulfilled in any case – in the sense of holistic reproductive medicine:
- Reduction of individual risk factors!
- Nutritional medical consultation including micronutrient therapy.
- Sports medicine consultation and inclusion of a sporting activity
- If necessary, measures of stress management
- Nutritional analysis for the man / woman, including health risk analysis.
- Health check for the man / woman
Reproductive medical treatments/assisted reproduction (“assisted reproduction technologies” ART) for the male:
- Testicular sperm extraction (TESE) – extraction of sperm from the testis.
- Microsurgical epididymal sperm aspiration (MESA) – extraction of sperm from the epididymis.
- Refertilization surgery if necessary
Reproductive medical treatments/assisted reproduction (“assisted reproduction technologies” ART) for the woman:
- Insemination – intrauterine insemination (IUI; sperm transfer into the uterine cavity).
- In vitro fertilization (IVF) – artificial insemination in a test tube.
- Intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) – insertion of a sperm cell into the egg.
- Intratubal gamete transfer/gamete intrafallopian transfer (GIFT) – insertion of egg and sperm into the fallopian tube.
- In vitro maturation (IVM) – egg maturation in the test tube.
- Refertilization surgery if necessary
Other measures that support reproduction:
- Late embryo transfer on day 5 or 6 (blastocyst transfer:Typically, embryos are returned to the uterus a little more than 48 hours after puncture (transfer). At this point, they have already divided and are at the 4-8 cell stage.
- Cryopreservation – freezing of fertilized eggs in the pronuclear stage and sperm (sperm cells).
- Assisted Hatching – in this process, the embryo‘s shell is scratched – usually with a laser – which makes it easier for it to leave the shell and possibly implantation.
Please note
The physical and mental health of men and women, as well as a healthy lifestyle are important prerequisites for successful fertility treatment.
Before starting therapeutic measures, you should in any case – as far as possible – reduce your individual risk factors!
Therefore, before starting any reproductive medical measure (e.g. IUI, IVF, etc.), have a health check and a nutritional analysis performed to optimize your personal fertility (fertility).