Are Fertilization and pregnancy success rates with ICSI higher?
Fertilization rates for ICSI: Most IVF programs see that about 70-85% of eggs injected using ICSI become fertilized. We call this the fertilization rate, which is different from the pregnancy rate. Pregnancy success rates for in vitro fertilization procedures with ICSI have been shown in some studies to be higher than for IVF without ICSI. This is because in many of the cases needing ICSI the female is relatively young and fertile (good egg quantity and quality) as compared to some of the women having IVF for reasons other than male factor infertility. Another way to say this is – average egg quantity and quality is usually better in ICSI cases (male factor cases) because it is less likely that there is a problem with the eggs – as compared to cases with unexplained infertility in which there is more probability of a somewhat reduced egg quantity and quality (on the average, since some women in this group have egg related issues).
