Understanding IVF: Dr Gautam Allahbadia talks about common concerns expressed by couples trying to conceive

Changing lifestyles and a career-centric approach dictates much of our choices, options and preferences in life. In that context, child-bearing and pregnancy has also come to bear the brunt of new life choices. Nowadays, couples and single women often consider starting a family at a later stage in life – when they are more stable financially. While this contradicts the biological clock that decreases fertility with age, assisted reproductive techniques (ARTs) like IVF step in as an option for these couples.

Contrary to non-medical opinion, IVF turns out to be safer option for couples looking to conceive. The methodology, is clear and is vouched for by expert obstetricians and doctors. According to Dr Gautam Allahbadia, a Mumbai-based IVF specialist, ARTs will now be more invariably linked to reproductionin the years to come. “Several couples and single women make a deliberate choice to conceive through IVF, while others opt for the procedure owing to fertility issues,” he says.

Whichever may be the case, there remain some concerns commonly expressed by patients choosing to undergo IVF and other ARTs. Couples with infertility problems and those who are undergoing the treatment often face many frustrations and disappointments before, during and after IVF treatment. Once started, the treatment can also be physically and emotionally challenging.Waiting for results can be stressful as well.

Talking about the patients’ concern, Dr Gautam Allahbadia says, “It’s only natural for the patients to have some questions in their mind.” He adds that some of common questions raised by couples trying to conceive include queries about the IVF procedure, such as what the procedure is all about and how it is performed. However, one of the major concerns expressed by patients remains the genetic health of the child, and the chances of a successful conception.

“The advancement in genetics has greatly improved the success rates of IVF procedures. Through procedures like Pre-implantation Genetic Screening (PGS) and Pre-Implantation GeneticDiagnosis (PGD),embryos are screened and tested for abnormalities. Through research in the field, it was found that nature does not let chromosomally abnormal babies stick to the uterus, passing it down in the form of abortions or miscarriages,”says Dr Gautam Allahbadia, who also heads the IVF team at Millennium Medical Centre MMCIVF, Dubai.

He further explains, “With PGTAIVF, we can screen the embryos for all 24 chromosome pairs. We transfer the normal embryos into the uterus, which arethen expected to go to term ashealthy pregnancies, in the form of chromosomally normal offspring. This has proved to be a miracle for women who previously suffered the oddities of abnormal pregnancies.”

PGD procedure, on the other hand, was initially used to diagnose hereditary disorders like thalassemia or severe muscular dystrophies, and avoid their transfers. Through PGD the gene that carried the abnormality was identified and the affected embryo discarded, hence its primary purpose was to eliminate genetic disorders in the next generation. However, with the advent of NGS, over 400 diseases can be screened and normal embryos can be transferred, explains Dr Allahbadia.

Corporate Comm India (CCI Newswire)