This page describes the fertility assessments and other tests you need to have before you can start a cycle of IVF treatment. These include semen analysis, ovarian assessment, and a set of virology tests that are required prior to treatment.
If you’re providing sperm for any kind of fertility treatment, a sample will be analysed first. If you’ve had a recent assessment elsewhere, our embryologists will look at the results and decide whether another should be done. Fertility can change, even if you have already fathered a child. This may be due to illness, a change in lifestyle or age.
The reason you’re asked to provide a semen sample could be any of the following:
All our semen analyses are performed using World Health Organisation (2010) Guidelines. We assess:
You’ll usually get the results through the post, normally to your home address, and will be discussed in-depth at your Initial Consultation appointment. You will be advised of what the analysis shows, how it might affect your treatment and the method of treatment that is appropriate for you.
This helps us to decide the best option of fertility treatment for you. A blood test is taken and analysed for Anti-Mullerian Hormone (AMH), which helps us to assess your potential reaction to stimulating drugs, and predict how many eggs we might be able to collect. This assessment also includes a trans-vaginal ultrasound, done at any stage of your menstrual cycle which enables us to look closely and identify:
This hormone is produced by the supporting cells around the eggs in the ovary and is the best single indicator of responses to fertility drugs. As you age and the number of eggs in your ovaries falls, we see a decrease in the level of AMH in your blood. Measuring it is a good way to get an indication of your ovarian reserve (link to A-Z) and AMH levels fall rapidly after the age of about 40. The levels of AMH in the blood don’t change across your cycle, so we can do this test on any day.
Before treatment, you also need to have a set of virology screening results. You can use recent test results if you have them. Some of the results will need to be dated within the 3 months before starting treatment if it’s your first cycle. For subsequent cycles, they need to be dated within the last 2 years.
Tests include:
Female Patients | Male Patients |
---|---|
Hepatitis B (core antibody and surface antigen) | Hepatitis B (core antibody and surface antigen) |
Hepatitis C | Hepatitis C |
HIV | HIV |
Up-to-date Smear Test | n/a |
Rubella antibodies | n/a |
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