In Vitro Fertilization ( IVF )

This is a totally different modality in which a bigger amount of medication is used to stimulate the ovaries to produce a much larger number of eggs which, once mature, are aspirated through a procedure called oocyte retrieval; usually done under light anesthesia. Then the eggs are assessed in the embryology lab and then prepared for fertilization by the collected sperm. After fertilization has occurred, embryos usually 2-3 days old (and sometimes 5 days old) are then assessed and transferred into the woman’s body in a simple procedure. In other words, the fertilization process here occurs in the lab and not inside the body as compared to the previous two treatment modalities.

Intra Cytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI)
It’s a variant of IVF with the only difference that instead of waiting for the fertilization to happen spontaneously, a sperm is selected and injected inside the egg in a delicate procedure done under high magnification. That will offer better fertilization chances in selected cases especially when there is male factor infertility.

Assisted hatching
Done in conjunction with IVF/ICSI; It aims at mechanically or chemically weakening the surrounding shell in a way that assists the embryo to "hatch" more easily and thus allow implantation into the lining of the uterus. it’s a technique done in cases where the embryo’s outer shell is thick in a way thought to negatively affect its implantation into the wall of the uterus and hence the pregnancy rate, and in other specific cases like advanced maternal age or repetitive IVF/ICSI failures.