Unexplained Infertility.... can start IVF in January!

[Gizzy Kelly]

Morning ladies

Okay yesterday myself and hubby went for our private consultation at Harley Street. I have had the majority of my tests done, ie all bloods, AMH, scan and my hubby has had 3 seman samples. (2 NHS) and 1 private.

Basically in a nut shell there is no reason why we cannot have a baby and no reason as to why we have not conceived over the last 2.5 years. My scans are clear, my periods are regular (over the last 2.5 years every 25/26 days) my AMH show a high egg reserve as does my scan and my bloods/scan show that I ovulate. I know I ovulate becuase this month I got a strong line.

Hubbys seman samples are fine. We were worried as the NHS ones showed poor morthology but last night they said that the NHS still go by the old WHO standards and not the new updated ones. In any event there is nothing wrong with his swimmers.

So what next?? Basically we can carry on and keep trying, or she basically said that we can start IVF in January. She did not recommend IUI (as she said the sucess rate is so low) or ICSI (as there is nothing wrong with hubby's swimmers)

Problem is that IVF is so expensive, so do we just go with it and take out a loan, or do we just keep trying! She did say that IVF sucess rate is 50/50. I think the frustration with all of this is that there is nothing wrong with either of us so it could happen next month but after 2.5 years clearly something is not clicking. I am nearly 32 and hubby is 34. We said we would sleep on it and have a good think about things over the weekend.

So there you go... we keep on trying or IVF! I should tell you that we are also going for our first referel on the NHS next week so it will be interesting to see what they say, but needless to say it will certainly give us somehting to think about over the weekend.

Have a good one girls

Love Gizzy xxxxxx

 

[charliebear]

That's good news that your both doing fine and all tests have come back good.

I guess it does give you something to think about. I dont know much about IVF but there must be some criteria for nhs IVF somewhere. I read yesterday that you can get 2/3 shots.

It will be really interesting to see what they say at you nhs app next week and what they recommend.
Charlie x

 

[kirstymichelle]

hmmm gizzy that is food for thought how about charting ov testin for i'd say 6 more months . Save money in the mean time then go for ivf if your still not managing. Then you will have a reserve of money and have given it a chance . (not that you haven't already but i think you can get my jist ) x

 

[Naomi D]

Hiya, I am/was in a similar boat to you. We had been trying for 1.5 years (not as long as you I know), and I'm 35 now. I had the range of tests done and was told unexplained infertility - like many other women. I have just been put on the nhs waiting list for ivf - which is about 12 months long in my area, and I was researching ivf a bit. From what I read the odds of each cycle working were about 30% not 50:50 like you've been told - although clinics do vary, even still 50% sounds like a high percentage?

Anyhoo, as it goes, just as we were being referred we got our bfp, and although its still early days, Im hopeful it will stick. Sometimes patience is the key, and it can happen naturally, and sometimes it will need a helping hand - there really is so easy choice, but whatever you decide - good luck!

 

[mummy2b73]

All I will say to you is never give up hope......We have been trying for 17 years and had similar problems to you firstly with unexplained infertility then PCOS and low sperm count etc (you name it we have had it). We have been through the whole fertility system and come out the other side with no success. In 2007 I was lucky enough to fall pregnant but it ended in me having a ruptured ectopic and due to the blood loss etc I nearly died. Anyway we decided to get on with life but I felt I couldn't face more fertility treatment at that time. So finally in January this year we decided to try IVF again.....anyway to cut (a very) long story short we had the usual tests done and were due to commence treatment in July....we decided in the mean time to go on holiday and have a massive blow out and do what we wanted, eat and drink what we wanted then knuckle down to the treatment when we got home.....anyway once home and 2 days before I was due at the hospital I felt a bit funny so I did a pregnancy test and it was POSITIVE !!! Anyway I am now 28 weeks pregnant and we are expecting a little boy.
Never give up there is always hope good things happen to good people....Wishing you the best of luck with whatever you decide to do !

 

[LouiseB]

Have you had any immune testing done Gizzy?

I'm just looking into having the tests done myself and that appears to be an explanation of some unexplained fertility cases.

There are two levels of tests - Level 1 and Level 2.

The level 1 ones are the easier ones that you should be able to manage to get on the Nhs.

Tests for the woman:

1. Full blood count, Fasting Glucose, Liver Function tests, Urea and Electrolytes (to check general health of the woman)

2. Thyroid function tests (both free T4 and TSH)

3. Anticardiolipin antibodies (both IgG and IgM)

4. Thrombophilia screen (must include Anti thrombin 111, Factor V Leiden, Factor 11 Prothrombin gene, PAIP Polymorphism, Activated Protein C Resistance, Protein C/Protein S, Lupus anticoagulant, Methylene tetrahydrofolate reductase gene mutation (MTHFR)) - To check for blood clotting issues, these are common in immune ladies.

5. Autoimmune antibodies (must include anti-nuclear antibodies, thyroid peroxidase and anti-mitochondrial antibodies) These are a marker for level 2 problems.

6. Karyotype (this is a chromosome check)

Blood test for the man:

1. Karyotype

You might already have had some of them done, but if you do have something wrong regarding any of these test then it could significantly reduce your chances of IVF working at all, but most are treatable.

They tend to do these kinds of tests for people with repeat miscarriage but they can also apply to people who fail to conceive at all.

Just something to maybe talk to your GP about before you blow an IVF cycle?

 

[Gizzy Kelly]

Thanks ladies, I think we wil wait to see what the NHS say on Tuesday and will let you know. Louise I have had a full blood count recommended but the rest no. Will my gp carry these out for me if I ask her ??? The ivf she has recommended is 'soft ivf' and is apparently less invasive. It is also a lot cheaper than some other ivf. I just wish I knew what the best thing is to do. Thanks for the info though on those tests Louise xxxxx

 

[LouiseB]

I think you have to ask very nicely for the GP to want to do them, but it is within their ability

I think they cost about £1000 privately.

I'd just explain to them that you aren't entitled to free IVF but you are worried that you might have an immune issue due to everything else coming back normal, so you are hoping the Nhs would pay for the tests to ensure you have the best possibly chance of IVF working because you can't afford a second go.

Soft IVF basically just cuts of most or all of the drugs cost but reduces success because you might only get a couple of eggs instead of possibly as many as 20.

In my situation i'd spend £800 on drugs but standard IVF proceedure is about £3000, so for the saving vs chance of success would not be worth it to me.

It is a tricky situation, but you do have time to think about it It doesn't have to start in Jan if you need more time xx

 

[Kay Kay]

hey gizzy, lots of good advice on here, i just wanted to say good luck with making your decision, and don't rush in to it cos it's a big one. ask what the waiting times are for ivf on the nhs when you go to your appt, that might help you make your decision (esp if it's 2yrs like my hosp). if we had the money we probably would go private for ivf, even though it's kinda against my principals but when you're at this point ttc you want to speed things up as much as poss. anyway, hugs hun xxx

 

[Gizzy Kelly]

Thanks again ladies, your advice is really helpful and I will let you know how it goes on Tuesday.

Lou I wonder why they have advised soft ivf rather than normal ivf? I would rather have a higher chance of success a pay more x

Love Gizzy xxx

 

[LouiseB]

To be honest, the only people i've heard of it being suggested to is women who are hitting menopause and therefore don't have many eggs left and/or have poor quality eggs so they don't want to produce too many at once which can further impact quality.

I suppose it could be cost related too if you mentioned that you are a bit strapped.

They could just be assuming that once the sperm meets the eggs that it will be guaranteed success with the tests all coming back clear, but it's a bit niave imo.

I don't really know though, just guessing.

I'm not aware of any benefits to having a soft IVF cycle in terms of getting pregnant for typical couples before they have had failed cycles specifically indicating it might be the way forward.

Good luck Tuesday xx