How Long Does North Houston IVF Fertility Treatment Take
For couples struggling to conceive, waiting to become parents can feel interminable. When our patients arrive for their first appointment at our North Houston fertility clinic, they often want to know exactly how quickly they can get pregnant through Kingwood IVF and The Woodlands IVF procedures. While each woman’s fertility journey is unique, the average North Houston IVF cycle takes around 6-8 weeks, from initial consultation in our North Houston fertility clinic to embryo transfer. After transfer, it can take another 4-6. In order to answer how long the whole process takes, we have provided an overview of the process below:
Before the North Houston IVF Procedure:
This is what you can expect prior to beginning IVF:
Consultation With Your North Houston Fertility Specialist
Your first appointment at our Kingwood IVF clinic or The Woodlands IVF clinic will be a discussion between you and the doctor regarding your medical and reproductive history, as well as your hope for North Houston IVF. This is also a good time to determine if you plan to freeze your embryos, if you plan to receive genetic testing, and whether or not you would be open to using an egg or sperm donor, if deemed necessary.
Pre-Procedure Testing
Before the North Houston IVF procedure can actually begin, a series of blood tests will allow our North Houston fertility specialists to determine hormone levels and test for infectious and genetic diseases, as well as a uterine exam to assess the health of the uterus. If applicable, a semen analysis will also be ordered to determine which type of insemination method is to be used later.
The North Houston IVF Process at Our Kingwood Fertility Clinic or The Woodlands Fertility Clinic
The process is as follows:
Step One: Fertility Medication
Because not all eggs a woman’s body produces will fertilize or develop normally, multiple eggs are needed for the IVF process, so you’ll receive synthetic hormones to stimulate your ovaries to produce multiple eggs each month. This process usually takes between 1-2 weeks.
Step Two: Egg Retrieval
Your eggs are collected during a minor medical procedure in our office. Our North Houston IVF doctor will use ultrasound imaging to guide a hollow needle through the pelvic cavity to retrieve the eggs. Medication will be administered to lessen discomfort.
Step Three: Sperm Sample Collected
The sperm sample is procured in our North Houston fertility clinic for introduction with the egg for fertilization. If a donor’s sample is used, there will be no need for this step.
Step Four: Fertilization
The egg and sperm are introduced in a sterile environment and incubated to encourage fertilization. Once cell division has been confirmed, fertilization has taken place and the fertilized eggs are now called embryos.
Step Five: Embryo Transfer
Approximately 3-5 days after fertilization has occurred, the embryos are transferred to the uterus using a catheter. This simple procedure does not require sedation and is performed in our Kingwood IVF clinic or The Woodlands IVF clinic.
Following the IVF Procedure:
About two weeks after embryo transfer, you will return to our Kingwood fertility clinic or The Woodlands fertility clinic to take a pregnancy test. If it is positive, we will encourage you to begin prenatal care as soon as possible. If it is negative, you will stop taking all hormonal medications and discuss the next possible steps with your North Houston fertility specialists.
Trust Our North Houston Fertility Clinic On Your Journey to Fertility
If you’ve been having trouble getting pregnant on your own, schedule an appointment at either our Kingwood IVF clinic or The Woodlands IVF clinic to see what procedures may be beneficial for you.
