Micromanipulation Procedures ICSI and Assisted Hatching

Dallas Fertility Center IVF Lab

ICSI

ICSI (intracytoplasmic sperm injection) is a procedure utilized to treat moderate to severe male factor infertility. It is performed in an embryology laboratory and involves the injection of a single sperm directly into an oocyte (egg) for the purpose of creating an embryo. ICSI is a form of in vitro fertilization as fertilization occurs in a laboratory, but it is different from "routine" IVF where sperm and eggs are cultured together overnight in an effort to inseminate eggs.  During an ICSI procedure, microsurgical instruments are used to stabilize the oocyte while an individual sperm is loaded into a special hollow needle.  Once the sperm is loaded, the needle will pierce the outer shell of the egg (called the zona pellucida) and the sperm will be pushed out.  Fertilization will be evaluated the next morning. Couples with male infertility and a history of poor fertilization or polyspermic fertilization are candidates for ICSI.

ICSI is a revolutionary procedure and allows men with little or no sperm in their ejaculate to create genetically related children. The sperm is collected and concentrated from the ejaculate, or it can be directly retrieved from the male's reproductive tract using testicular sperm extraction (TESE) or microscopic epididymal sperm aspiration (MESA). It’s common for sperm to be present in the male reproductive tract even though there are none in the ejaculate.

Our Texas fertility clinic laboratory has state-of-the-art equipment for performing ICSI, including a micromanipulator, microsurgical tools, and specialized microscopes. ICSI is a delicate procedure.  Our embryology team has years of successful clinical experience, and our board certified fertility specialists oversee all aspects of our laboratory.

Assisted Hatching

Assisted hatching is a laboratory procedure performed usually on embryos that are three days old. It involves the creation of an artificial opening in the zona pellucida, the glycoprotein coating (shell) surrounding the embryo. This opening can be created mechanically with microsurgical tools, specifically a laser, or chemically, with an acid solution.

While assisted hatching is performed in many ARTS clinics, this procedure is not clearly beneficial. It is even considered experimental by some physicians and clinics.  Assisted hatching is not routinely performed on IVF patients in our clinic. Only couples with specialized individual treatment plans will be offered the procedure.

Designed By Catalyst Healthcare Marketing