Tag: IVF Fertility Treatment

All You Need To Know About The Legal Age Limit For Undergoing IVF In India

Posted on by IRM

IVF treatment is an advanced reproductive technology and is gaining popularity, which is why IRM has come up with this blog to offer you valuable insight about the age limitations and various other factors that might impact IVF treatment. IVF (In-Vitro Fertilization) is a ray of hope for many childless couples. It is vital to know about the legal age limit and guidelines regarding IVF treatment in India before you make a decision.

The Importance Of IVF

It is a process where the sperm and the egg are combined outside the human body, and the resulting embryo is then transferred to the uterus.

Things That Influence The Age Limit

Ovarian Reserve

This refers to the quality and number of eggs that diminish with age. Younger females have a higher ovarian reserve, and this increases the chances of a successful IVF. Thus, the earlier you seek IVF treatment, the better it is!

Health And Fitness

Your overall health and fitness levels play a vital role in the success of IVF treatments. While older people with health issues might face health-related issues affecting fertility and pregnancy, younger people are fitter and have better chances of conceiving.

Medical Advancements

The upgrade of fertility treatments have helped older women to conceive via IVF, especially with the use of donor eggs. Nevertheless, this kind of procedure is not simple, and only reputed healthcare professionals can handle the risk factors that come along.

Age Limitation For IVF Treatment In India

Legal Restrictions

Under legal guidelines, the age of a woman undergoing this treatment should be between 21 and 50 years, while the male partner needs to be between 21 and 55 years of age.

Maximum Age For IVF

If a woman is using her own eggs, then the maximum age limit should be around 45 years. If the female is using donor eggs, then the age limit of the female can go up to 50. For men, the maximum age limit is 55 years.

Minimum Age For IVF

The minimum age limit for both men and women is 21 years, as this ensures both partners are legally adults and can take informed decisions about the fertility treatments.

Ideal Age For IVF

The best age for a successful IVF treatment is between 25 and 35 years, as during this period women have a higher ovarian reserve and the egg quality is also better, increasing the chances of a successful pregnancy.

Frequently Asked Questions On The Legal Age Limit In India For IVF Treatment

Are There Any Special Circumstances Where The Age Limit For IVF Treatment In India Can Be Exceeded?

Rarely do exceptions to age limits occur, usually only being taken into account in special situations. Consulting with a skilled fertility specialist at IRM is essential to comprehend and understand the available options.

Is It Possible For Women Above The Age Of 50 To Have IVF Treatment In India?

Females who are older than 50 years old can receive IVF with donated eggs, as long as they meet the health and fitness requirements established by the fertility centre.

Is There Any Penalty Or Punishment For Surpassing The Age Limit For IVF Treatment?

Even though there is no defined punishment for going over the age limit, it is essential to adhere to the rules to ensure the safety and welfare of both the mother and baby.

How Does The Team At IRM Provide Assistance To Elderly Couples Seeking IVF?

The IRM team offers tailored attention and state-of-the-art fertility options to assist elderly couples. They provide thorough assessments and customized treatment strategies to enhance success rates while prioritizing patient safety and well-being.

Know How Lifestyle Factors Can Affect Your Fertility: IRM Decodes It All for You!

Posted on by IRM

Whenever someone is struggling with fertility, the first question that comes to their mind is, “Am I doing anything wrong?” The answer to this question is extremely difficult, as many factors contribute to infertility, and one of the main ones is genetic. However, genetics only load the gun; diet and lifestyle pull the trigger!

Yes, at times lifestyle choices can be the main culprit for your inability to conceive. In this blog, we would be discussing the lifestyle factors that might be holding you back from becoming a happy parent.

Age Affects Fertility

We cannot control age, but as the biological clock goes on ticking, your chances of conceiving get more challenging. As women age, the quantity and quality of the eggs start to decline. Fewer eggs are released, and the remaining ones might have genetic abnormalities. It’s a misconception that women lose only one egg each month, whereas as per studies, women roughly lose around 30 eggs daily, and with high-end fertility medications from IRM, you can retrieve only a certain number of these eggs.

However, not to forget, quality is also vital, as a 30-year-old woman has around 75% of eggs chromosomally normal, while a 35-year-old woman has 50%, and at the age of 40, it’s about 25%.

Men are not immune to these age-related changes. With age, the sperm quality also goes down and affects fertility. Starting a family early can impact fertility positively, and waiting until later in life can reduce the chances of a successful conception.

Weight and Nutrition Affect Fertility

Obesity and poor dietary choices might not be directly linked with fertility, but they can have a negative impact on your fertility. This is because most of the overweight and obese population make poor nutrition choices, which can potentially hinder fertility. Weight and nutrition issues are a result of lifestyle factors, and some are caused by genetics and others by medical conditions, both of which need to be approached in an appropriate manner.

We suggest you start a diet rich in antioxidants and vitamins that support reproductive health. Iron and zinc play a major role in egg and sperm development. Choose healthy fats coming from nuts, avocados, and olive oil over saturated fats—but do so in moderation.

Excess body fat affects ovulation, sperm count, and quality, which means maintaining an ideal body weight can promote reproductive health and minimize treatment complications of IVF. However, at IRM we have successfully helped overweight couples and individuals conceive through IVF. This brings us to the next part, and that is, being underweight can affect fertility to a great extent! Being underweight can disrupt hormonal balance and lead to irregular menstrual cycles, thereby minimizing your chances of conception.

Exercise Impacting Fertility

While regular exercise promotes good health, excessive workouts can disrupt hormonal balance and affect ovulation in women. IRM recommends women who are planning to conceive should limit their exercise to less than 60 minutes a day and less than 5 hours a week! On the flip side, a completely sedentary life affects fertility, as without exercise people tend to be overweight and obese, which have their own implications affecting fertility. A healthy exercise routine with aerobic and strength training workouts needs to be encouraged before, during, and even after pregnancy.

Stress and Its Effects On Fertility

While stress alone cannot lead to infertility, a long history of anxiety and depression can cause trouble conceiving naturally and even lead to complications during your IVF treatment. While this issue has not been fully studied, staying stress-free ensures better health and can help you take care of your overall being, which again can lead to increased fertility and a better chance of conceiving naturally or through IVF, whichever you choose!

Substance Abuse and Its Impact on Fertility

Certain things that go inside your body can affect reproductive health and reduce the chances of conceiving.

Smoking: Cigar smoking reduces fertility in both women and men as it damages eggs, sperm, and the uterus lining and also disrupts hormonal production. We suggest if you are serious enough to embrace parenthood, consider quitting this habit!

Alcohol: As per studies in Harvard Health, women who drank more than 7 drinks a week saw a 7% reduction in chances of conception as opposed to women who do not drink at all. For the male brigade, the number stands at 9%!

Illicit Drugs: LSD, marijuana, cocaine, ecstasy, and methamphetamines severely disrupt menstrual cycles in women, and many prescription drugs are responsible for low sperm count and can lower total seminal fluid in drug users, leading to low testosterone as well.

Irregular menstruation throws the cycle off balance, affecting hormones and tingling up the fertility journey. With a low sperm count, there are reduced chances of a sperm meeting the egg. Due to these reasons, recreational drugs are best avoided when you are trying to start a family.

Change Your Lifestyle to Optimize Fertility With IRM By Your Side

Your lifestyle choices have an impact on your reproductive health. However, just blindly following a diet and exercise routine might not help. Connect with the healthcare professionals at IRM to get more clarity on your fertility journey. We understand that every individual or couple is different and offer you a customized approach towards your journey of parenthood.

Is IUI Painful? All You Wanted To Know About Intrauterine Insemination

Posted on by IRM

While people find it extremely challenging to adapt to the various ways of getting pregnant, one of the most standard procedures was IUI, or intrauterine insemination. This procedure involves the direct implantation of sperm into the uterus to maximise the chances of pregnancy. This procedure ensures that the sperm has higher chances of getting access to the egg and thus increases the possibility of conception. However, people have the misconception that IUI is painful, but that’s a complete myth. In this blog, we will explain how things work and whether or not IUI is a painful procedure.

What is IUI?

IUI addresses male infertility-related issues, which include a low sperm count or if the sperm is too frail and slow to reach the fallopian tubes. With the IUI (intrauterine insemination) procedure, the sperm is inserted into the uterus very close to the egg. The best thing about IUI is that it’s non-invasive and cost-effective compared to other expensive fertility treatments. The process takes no longer than 15 minutes and is significantly safer and more comfortable for improving fertility.

Is IUI painful?

Truth be told, the first time the sperm is placed inside the uterus, slight discomfort might be experienced. While some might find things intolerable, most women do not experience any sort of pain. However, as it’s a minimally intrusive process, the patient won’t be sedated or need to take painkillers. The IUI procedure is conducted only when you are anticipating ovulation. The sperm cells are directly injected into the uterus to facilitate the proximity between the egg and the sperm. This makes the fertilisation process easier by cutting down the sperm’s journey to the uterus.

Mild cramping and a minor feeling of pinching might be experienced by a few patients when the catheter is inserted into the cervix. However, if this sensation intensifies, then the doctor needs to be informed to handle the situation immediately. During the treatment, minor bleeding and cramps might occur, but the pain subsides as soon as the catheter is withdrawn. A small amount of bleeding happens when the tube scratches the cervix, but overall, it’s not dangerous.

It can be concluded that IUI is not a painful treatment, but if the uterus is inflamed, then minor cramping and bleeding might be experienced. However, our team of doctors at IRM can help you go through the procedure smoothly with minor complaints.

People who go for the IUI treatment

If the male partner’s sperm count is low or sperm mobility is not sufficient, then this procedure is performed. IUI is recommended in the following situations:

  • • Single women looking to get pregnant
  • • Undiagnosed infertility
  • • Males with insufficient sperm
  • • Mucous issues in the cervix
  • • Men having trouble getting an erection
  • • Mild endometriosis
  • • Same-sex couples wishing to have a baby
  • • Couples who do not want to pass on the genetic abnormalities of their male partner to their unborn child

Who should avoid the IUI procedure?

Women with acute fallopian tube conditions should avoid this procedure. Even people with mild to severe endometriosis shouldn’t undergo the IUI treatment.

Which procedure is more painful, IVF or IUI?

The level of pain experienced during IVF, in vitro fertilisation (IVF), and intrauterine insemination (IUI) varies depending on the person.  Both procedures are not entirely comfortable but depend on the techniques used, individual tolerance, and the patient’s overall health.

IUI is generally less painful than IVF as it is generally faster, does not require anaesthesia, and the discomfort subsides shortly after the procedure is over. IVF might be more painful, but since it is performed under sedation or anaesthesia, patients don’t face any discomfort right away. However, some women complain of mild cramping and bloating. IVF is more invasive, and the procedure has to go through multiple stages.

Take the final call

The decision between IUI and IVF needs to be based on medical recommendations, and while discomfort might be a factor to consider, the focus should be on which treatment offers better chances of pregnancy. IRM can be a great choice for IUI or IVF. Our team of doctors is trained and qualified enough to diagnose the underlying cause and perform treatments that ensure success, keeping in mind your safety and comfort. Connect with our team to get more details for ensuring a seamless experience.

All You Need To Know About Ovarian Follicles And How They Affect Your Fertility

Posted on by IRM

Ovaries are a vital part of the female reproductive system, and they house the eggs in ovarian follicles. The tiny, fluid-filled sacs are ovarian follicles where the eggs stay from the time of a female’s birth until the egg is mature enough to descend down the fallopian tube during the ovulation phase.

The tiny fluid sacs surround the immature eggs in the ovary while they are mature enough to go down the fallopian tube for fertilisation. The eggs start to mature once a woman reaches puberty and starts menstruating. The ovarian follicles are important as they influence the menstrual cycle of a woman. During every menstrual cycle, a single egg grows to maturity and travels down the follicle that ruptures during ovulation to release the mature egg. When a woman reaches puberty, 300,000 to 4,00,000 follicles are left. However, only an ultrasound of the pelvic region can determine how many follicles are left and a woman’s fertility levels.

4 Stages of Ovarian Follicle

Let’s take a look at the different stages of ovarian follicle development for a better understanding:

Primary Follicle: This is the first stage when the ovarian follicle starts to mature and is ready for release for ovulation. At this stage, the germinal cells start to surround the follicles to form layers that are called primary follicles.

Secondary Follicle: At this stage, the primary follicles start to mature further, and from the additional layers, granular cells are formed around the primary follicles. These granular cells are secondary follicles.

Tertiary Follicle: At the third stage, two more additional layers are formed around the secondary follicle. These additional layers are theca interna, and externa. It also has an antrum—a space that’s filled with fluid. This tertiary follicle is much larger.

Graafian Follicle: This is the last stage as the oocyte matures and gets ready for release. This is the ovulation stage, where the corpus luteum forms to support and promote embryo implantation once it’s fertilised by the sperm.

How Do Ovarian Follicles Affect Fertility?

Most women after the age of 35 face trouble conceiving, and that’s when doctors suggest a fertility test. The test measures her ovarian reserves by counting the number of follicles left. This is because throughout the lifecycle of a female, many follicles disintegrate and are reabsorbed by the body. As one ages, the rate of diminishment increases, which depletes the ovarian reserve of a woman. The number of ovarian follicles present in a woman’s body is related directly to her fertility.

Ovarian Follicles & It’s Importance

Ovarian follicles nurture, protect, and secrete hormones that help eggs mature and get released during ovulation. If ovarian follicles are not present, the eggs won’t mature and cannot be fertilised. In fact, fertility issues are related to follicles and can lead to conditions like PCOS and premature ovarian insufficiency. You can learn more about these from a healthcare professional at IRM.

The Usual Count of Antral Follicles

It’s a normal antral follicle count when each ovary has 5 to 10 antral follicles and is around 2 to 100 mm in diameter. However, the antral follicle is indirectly proportional to ageing. The higher the age of a female, the lower the antral follicle count.

The Dominant Follicle of The Ovary

Out of the numerous follicles, the one that matures is the dominant follicle. In the natural menstrual cycle, one or two dominant follicles are present, but with fertility treatment at IRM and certain medications given by our team of doctors, the mature egg count can increase, thereby increasing your chances of conceiving.

The Empty-Follicle Syndrome

The empty-follicle syndrome is also called EFS. Follicular aspiration helps stimulate the ovaries to retrieve more oocytes, and when this process fails, then it’s called EFS. That’s when medical intervention is necessary, as healthcare professionals administer HCG to increase the number of oocytes for retrieval. If HCG levels are optimised and there are no oocytes for retrieval, then it is a genuine EFS, and if there are no oocytes for low HCG, then it is a false EFS.

Takeaway

Ovarian follicles are vital to determining female fertility. If there is a lack of follicles in the ovary or any malfunctioning of the ovarian follicles, then it directly impacts a woman’s fertility. However, a healthcare professional can help you get the right treatment.

Naturally Fixing Fertility Issues: Scientific Ways to Conceive Without Popping Pills

Posted on by IRM

While many people might suggest various kinds of quick fixes that can help you get pregnant, there is little scientific evidence behind them. Many women have crossed their prime by following unscientific tips and tricks that claim to resolve fertility issues in females. Lifestyle changes and sexual practices are definitely related to fertility, but expert opinion coming from a reliable source like the IRM is ideal to resolve cases of female infertility. One can naturally get pregnant without popping pills and however visiting a women’s fertility clinic for expert opinion can be a game changer for many.

Age Is A Factor

Age is just a number, but it’s vital to consider before you go for the female fertility test. Women in their 20s and 30s conceive within the first six months of an attempted pregnancy. However, after the age of 40, the probability of getting pregnant is reduced to half. Fertility declines with age for both women and men. Pregnancy after the age of 40 is rare, and complications like aneuploidy and miscarriage are quite common. As per fertility tests conducted for women, it has been observed that after the age of 35, the chances of getting pregnant diminish. However, male fertility starts to decline after 50. Infertility is definitely a disease, as even after unprotected vaginal intercourse and repeated attempts, the couple fails to conceive.

Fertility Window

A woman needs to be aware of her ovulation cycle before she deems herself infertile and books an appointment with a doctor for fertility tests for women. Sexual activity during the ovulation phase can increase the chances of conception, whereas the luteal phase and follicular phase are not that effective, and the probability of conceiving is low. However, a certified doctor at IRM can help you identify your fertility window and make the right call. Every woman is different, and so are her hormones and her menstrual cycle. Before rushing for an IVF fertility treatment, consider asking a healthcare practitioner at IRM about the fertility window. Most of our clients have benefited by embracing this natural and proven scientific method and have conceived the baby in the shortest span of time.

Things That Can Affect Your Fertility Health:

  • • Extremely thin and obese women have low chances of getting pregnant and suffer from female infertility.
  • • Try following a ‘fertility diet’ from a women’s fertility clinic like us to increase your chances of conceiving. Higher consumption of monounsaturated fats, vegetables, low-glycemic carbohydrates, iron from plants, low-fat dairy, and multivitamins is essential to boosting fertility health.
  • • Smoking causes miscarriages and should be avoided by women. Not only that, even men should avoid smoking, as it decreases sperm density and causes abnormalities in sperm morphology.
  • • High levels of caffeine can cause miscarriage and be the reason for congenital anomalies. Limit the caffeine intake if you want the adverse effects to impact your fertility and pregnancy outcomes.
  • • Alcohol abuse can lead to sexual dysfunction in both men and women and have a detrimental effect on your chances of getting pregnant.
  • • Exposure to environmental elements like polychlorinated biphenyls can impact fertility in women.

When All Else Fails: IVF Fertility Treatment Can Save the Day!

While natural remedies and methods are all great, they are not 100% applicable. Stress, food habits, and lifestyle also play a great role in fertility issues faced by both men and women. However, it’s recommended to seek IVF fertility treatment in Kolkata rather than relying on natural tips and tricks alone. Your natural fixes might take years to work and might not give any results at all. We suggest trying these natural fixes for at least six months, and if they don’t help you conceive, then visiting a doctor and getting IVF fertility treatment is a wise decision.