Choosing a reproduction clinic in Spain can be helped by the implantation rate, as it reflects the quality of the embryos obtained for each patient. The embryo implantation rate is the percentage of embryos transferred to the uterus resulting in a pregnancy. In addition, the implantation rate has the advantage of being expressed in the same way by all clinics, which makes possible the comparison between them and with the national average.

Why choosing a reproduction clinic by the implantation rate is better than by the pregnancy rate per transfer?

Assisted reproduction clinics often express the success of their treatments giving the pregnancy rate per embryo transfer, which reports on the number of pregnancies achieved after each transfer, regardless of whether 1, 2 or 3 embryos were transferred.

The implantation rate, however, informs us of how many pregnancies occur with each of the embryos transferred. In single embryo transfers, the pregnancy rate per transfer and embryo implantation rate is the same.

How does the implantation rate reflect the quality of the clinic?

The embryo implantation rate is one of the factors that best reflects the quality of the in vitro fertilization  laboratory and clinical work. An assisted reproduction clinic will be better than another when it obtains the same pregnancy rate per embryo transfer, transferring fewer embryos. The lower the number of transferred embryos to get pregnant, the greater the quality of the embryos, not only morphologic, but genetic and metabolic.

Additionally, the transfer of fewer embryos, will decrease two of the most important risks from assisted reproduction treatments, the multiple pregnancy and the late ovarian hyperstimulation (linked to pregnancy). These two risks are especially important when 2 or more embryos are transferred. 

How can the implantation rate be improved?

The improvement of embryo implantation rate depends on factors that could have an impact on the quality of eggs, sperm and embryos.

It is clear that the characteristics of the patients, age and diagnosis, will do a clinic results to differ from another, but also certain care before and during treatment can influence in getting better implantation rate. In the diagnosis, it is important the correction of factors that decrease the fertility of the couple (tobacco, alcohol, overweight, infections, endocrine alterations…). In the treatment, the ovarian stimulation protocol, drugs and dose chosen, evaluation of follicular growth and the timing of the follicular puncture, will influence the oocytes arriving to the laboratory in the best possible conditions. Thereafter, a good part of the embryo quality will depend on the work and conditions of the IVF laboratory.

The IVF laboratory has an infinite number of determining factors of the embryo quality. From temperature, quality of the air, microscopes, type and number of incubators, media and culture… to the most important one, having experienced embryologists who take decisions on how and when to act on spermatozoa, oocytes and embryos from each couple, customizing their actions and taking into account the clinical criteria that have led them to need treatment.

Finally, it is necessary to take extreme care to the time of embryo transfer. There is no use doing an excellent job in the laboratory if the time, media, and the technique are not careful transferring the embryo into the uterus.

What is the implantation rate in URH Garcia of the Real compared to the overall Spanish?

The results of the Registry of the Spanish Fertility Society (SEF) with data from the year 2016 have been recently published. Data are delivered mandatorily by clinics to the SEF and published jointly and individually by clinic. Their analysis can help patients choosing a reproduction clinic.

Outcomes that occur at each clinic include the embryo implantation rate in IVF and egg donation. Rates of clinics are given in numerical ranges, while the overall results in Spain are given as an average. When the range of outcomes of the clinic is above the Spanish average, we know that the clinic gets better results than normal. This is true for URH García del Real transfers with fresh embryos in IVF and egg donation (we show results in the table).

In conclusion, from the many factors used for choosing a reproduction clinic, the embryo implantation rate should be considered, since it assesses the clinical and laboratory work and allows you to compare, regardless of the number of embryos transferred, the true embryo quality obtained at the end of the treatments and their ability to implant and achieve pregnancy.

If you are still left with doubts about choosing a reproduction clinic using the embryo implantation rate, we offer a completely free, no-obligation consultation to solve them. You can make an appointment through our website or by phoning 917401690. We will be glad to help you!

Dr. Sylvia Fernández-Shaw Zulueta – Director of URH García of the Real