What is in vitro maturation (IVM) and is it beneficial for women with PCOS?
In vitro maturation is a process in which immature eggs are harvested from a woman early in her cycle and matured in a laboratory using gonadotropins, rather than medicating the patient in order to stimulate follicle growth prior to egg retrieval (IVF). After the eggs are matured, they are fertilized and resulting embryos are transferred to the uterus. While gaining publicity recently, the procedure is not really that new. It isn’t widely used because the pregnancy rate with IVM is low, and the miscarriage rate is high. The primary advantages of the process are that it may work for women who are poor responders to medications, the risk of hyperstimulation is eliminated, and it reduces costs by lessening the amount of medications and monitoring needed. Fertilization rates in PCOS patients may be improved if they are given an hCG injection 36 hours prior to egg retrieval.
In vitro maturation is a process in which immature eggs are harvested from a woman early in her cycle and matured in a laboratory using gonadotropins, rather than medicating the patient in order to stimulate follicle growth prior to egg retrieval (IVF). After the eggs are matured, they are fertilized and resulting embryos are transferred to the uterus. While gaining publicity recently, the procedure is not really that new. It isn’t widely used because the pregnancy rate with IVM is low, and the miscarriage rate is high. The primary advantages of the process are that it may work for women who are poor responders to medications, the risk of hyperstimulation is eliminated, and it reduces costs by lessening the amount of medications and monitoring needed. Fertilization rates in PCOS patients may be improved if they are given an hCG injection 36 hours prior to egg retrieval. http://www.inciid.org/faq/pcos5.
