What does a Fertility Assessment Entail?

If you’re experiencing issues with your fertility and want to try IVF, you’ll need to undergo a fertility assessment. These will include semen analysis, ovarian assessment and virology tests that are required prior to treatment.

Fertility tests can take time and fertility decreases with age, so it is advised to book your appointment as early as possible.

Semen Analysis

If you’re a man that is providing sperm for any kind of fertility treatment, you will need a sample analysed. It’s important to understand that fertility can change, even if you already have children. This could be down to illness, lifestyle changes and age. Semen analysis is used to assess the likelihood of achieving pregnancy with your partner and can also diagnose any issues within your sperm. The analysis of sperm can also determine which treatment is most appropriate and potentially effective for you and your partner. If you’re looking to freeze your sperm for future use or for further treatments.

Semen analysis assesses sperm count, motility, morphology and volume and pH levels.

Results will be sent to you through the post and will be discussed with you at the initial consultation appointment. Specialists will be able to guide you through what the analysis shows and how it could affect your chosen treatment, as well as what treatment is recommended.

Ovarian Assessment

Ovarian assessment allows professionals to determine the best option of fertility treatment for you. Firstly, a blood test will be taken and analysed for AMH (Anti-Mullerian Hormone). As you age, the number of eggs in your ovaries will decrease as well as the level of AMH in your blood. Measuring it gives a good indication of your potential reaction to stimulating drugs and will predict how many eggs are likely to be collected for treatment. Ovarian assessments also include trans-vaginal ultrasounds. These can be conducted at any stage of a woman’s menstrual cycle and can identify several things, including:

• The volume of a woman’s ovaries- ovaries can decrease in size before a woman reaches the menopause. Smaller ovaries are likely to respond poorly to IVF stimulation drugs.

• Antral Follicle Count- predicts how ovaries will respond to stimulation drugs and can give professionals an idea of how many eggs will be collected for treatment.

Virology

Prior to any treatment, patients need to have a set of virology screening results. If it’s your first IVF cycle, results will need to be dated within the 3 months before starting treatment. Virology tests include:

• Hepatitis B (for both men and women)

• Hepatitis C (for both men and women)

• HIV (for both men and women)

• Smear Test (for women)

• Rubella antibodies (for women)

If you would like further information on your fertility assessment or would like to speak to a member of the team regarding the treatments we offer, you can contact us here or by giving us a call on 0115 828 0246.