Course / Basics of Fertility Treatment
Fertility treatment involves a range of medical interventions designed to help individuals and couples achieve pregnancy when natural conception proves challenging. For patients of South Asian heritage, factors such as lifestyle, delayed family planning, polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), endometriosis, and male factor infertility are relatively common contributors to infertility.
At Surrogacy4All, one of the leading fertility and surrogacy agencies in the USA, our approach combines advanced reproductive technologies with a deep understanding of cultural and genetic nuances specific to the South Asian population.
This course outlines the main stages of fertility treatment — from natural methods to advanced assisted reproductive technologies (ART).
Timed intercourse involves identifying the fertile window during a woman’s menstrual cycle to optimize the chances of conception.
Key Components:
Ovulation Tracking: Using hormonal blood tests and ultrasounds to determine when ovulation will occur.
Basal Body Temperature & Ovulation Kits: Supplemental tools to confirm the ovulation period.
Intercourse Timing: Couples are advised to have intercourse every 24–48 hours during the fertile window (approximately 2 days before and on the day of ovulation).
When It’s Used:
This is typically the first-line approach for couples with no major infertility diagnosis, regular menstrual cycles, and normal semen parameters.
Expert Insight:
If pregnancy does not occur after 3–6 cycles of timed intercourse, especially in women over 35, further evaluation and escalation to other treatments are recommended.
Oral medications are used to stimulate the ovaries and induce ovulation in women who have irregular cycles or anovulation (lack of ovulation).
Common Medications:
Clomiphene Citrate (Clomid): Encourages the release of hormones that trigger ovulation.
Letrozole (Femara): An aromatase inhibitor increasingly preferred due to fewer side effects and improved pregnancy rates, especially in PCOS patients.
Monitoring:
Treatment requires ultrasound monitoring to measure follicle growth and hormone levels, ensuring ovulation occurs safely and effectively.
When It’s Used:
For patients with PCOS or mild ovulatory dysfunction.
As a preparatory step before intrauterine insemination (IUI).
Expert Insight:
Letrozole is often the first-line medication for South Asian women with PCOS due to higher success rates and better endometrial receptivity compared to Clomiphene.
IUI involves placing processed and concentrated sperm directly into the uterus around the time of ovulation.
Procedure Overview:
Ovarian stimulation using oral medications or mild injectable hormones.
Monitoring follicle growth via ultrasound.
Triggering ovulation with hCG (human chorionic gonadotropin).
Insemination procedure performed 24–36 hours after the trigger.
Ideal Candidates:
Unexplained infertility.
Mild male factor infertility.
Cervical mucus abnormalities.
Couples who failed timed intercourse cycles.
Success Rates:
Typically range from 10–20% per cycle, depending on the woman’s age and fertility diagnosis.
Expert Insight:
IUI is a cost-effective intermediate step before moving to IVF. However, it’s most effective when used for a limited number of cycles (usually 3–4) before considering more advanced treatments.
IVF is the most effective form of assisted reproductive technology, involving the fertilization of eggs with sperm in a laboratory, followed by the transfer of embryos into the uterus.
IVF Process Steps:
Ovarian Stimulation: Hormonal injections to stimulate multiple egg development.
Egg Retrieval: A minor surgical procedure to collect mature eggs.
Fertilization: Eggs are fertilized with sperm in the lab (conventional IVF or ICSI).
Embryo Culture: Embryos are cultured for 3–5 days.
Embryo Transfer: A selected embryo (or embryos) is transferred into the uterus.
Advanced Techniques:
Preimplantation Genetic Testing (PGT): To screen embryos for genetic or chromosomal abnormalities.
Embryo Freezing (Vitrification): Allows for future use and better cycle planning.
Single Embryo Transfer (SET): Minimizes multiple pregnancy risks.
Success Factors:
Age, egg quality, sperm health, uterine environment, and embryology lab standards are critical determinants of IVF success.
Expert Insight:
For many South Asian couples, IVF offers the highest success rate — particularly in cases of long-standing infertility, blocked fallopian tubes, diminished ovarian reserve, or male factor infertility.
Our job is to listen, to connect the dots between your needs, and to determine how we can best help you have your baby. If you’re asking how much does it cost for a surrogate, we’ll walk you through every step of the process to ensure there are no surprises.
To make an appointment with one of our counselors or physicians, please call (212) 661-7673 or email info@surrogacy4all.com. We look forward to hearing from you.
Surrogacy4All is a unique international surrogacy service targeted at providing state of the art IVF and surrogacy services to Intended Parents irrespective of age, sex or color, at the lowest possible cost in the world.
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