Saturday, April 28, 2012

Creating a Future with Intra-Cytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI)

By Anne Liew


With its first triumph in the year 1992, Intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection or ICSI is now used to help patients with severe male-factor fertility. ICSI aids men who are distressed from low sperm count, poor quality sperms and unnaturally shaped sperms, as well as sperms that have trouble attaching to an egg.

Men who performed an irreversible vasectomy and those who are suffering from a blockage in the reproductive tracts; can now benefit from ICSI. Not to mention couples, who have undergone IVF and failed in the process repeatedly, are also urged to go for ICSI.

After several blood tests and counselling, couples can then go on witha life changing process than they never visualized possible. A lot like in vitro fertilisation (IVF), drugs are injected into the women to boost the growth of more than one follicle. This process allows more than one egg to be recollected so that the most distinguished blastocyst can be acquired to be released into the uterus.

It is probable not to administer these drugs, thereby only producing one egg to be fertilised. This is known as the natural cycle. However this method has its hazards as well. The single egg produced has a lower success rate when compared to a scenario whereby several eggs are obtained.

A sperm sample is collected from the male patient either by masturbation or forcefully taken via a needle with the help of some anaesthetics. If neither of these methods were bear results, testicular sperm extraction (TESE) will then be performed. TESE is carried out when testicular biopsies reveal Sertoli Cell only, severe hypo-spermatogenesis, maturation arrest and individuals whose epididymis is unapproachable.

The sample collected will first be centrifuged to differentiate the live sperms from the dead ones. Once this step is completed, individual eggs are fertilised and allowed to divide into a ball of cells. Embryos are then carefully inserted into the uterus using a thin catheter. These embryos will be carefully monitored throughout the next few days.

If the embryos successfully attach themselves to the uterine walls, pregnancy is inevitable. Promising embryos are also selected concurrently and frozen for future use. Couples may also request to freeze fertilised embryos if they so wish to.

This treatment has helped many couples who are hoping to starting a family but held back by health complications. Amongst those are the diabetic and the crippled due to spinal injuries. ICSI is also established beyond doubt to have a higher success rate as compared to IVF due to its nature of being able to store frozen embryos. Male infertility issues have often caused gloominess amongst the male community; in some cases resulted in suicide and ostracism from the opposite sex. With ICSI, this minority would have a better future.




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