'POINTLESS' IVF TREATMENTS THAT CAN WASTE THOUSANDS

'POINTLESS' TREATMENTS THAT CAN COST THOUSANDS

Endometrial scratch (up to £350)

Scratching the womb is said to release hormones that make it more adhesive, but studies found it does not help women with fewer than two failed implants.

Assisted hatching (£615)

May help repeatedly unsuccessful couples by softening the embryo’s outer shell so it can ‘hatch’ more easily, but no evidence this works for older women.

Time-lapse monitoring (£775)

Camera shows up abnormalities by taking pictures as embryos develop, but no good quality evidence for routine use.

Embryo glue (£320)

Chemical with added hyaluronic acid developed to help the embryo ‘stick’ to the womb lining. May increase birth rates, but can also cause unplanned multiple births.

Intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection (up to £1,390)

Sperm injected directly into egg is said to help fertilisation, but experts argue this is not necessary if a man’s sperm is normal.

Intra-cytoplasmic morphological selected sperm injection (up to £600)

Uses a microscope almost 6,000 times more powerful than usual to identify any defects, but creates no more pregnancies than a basic sperm injection.

Immune therapy (£1,500)

Based on claim a woman may fail to become pregnant because her immune system rejects the embryo. A review found blood level of ‘natural killer’ cells, which fight infection, has no effect on implantation.

Pre-implantation genetic screening (£3,100)

Identifies abnormalities, screening out embryos unlikely to implant. May cut miscarriages, but has not been found to raise birth rates in women with a good prognosis.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3972968/The-great-IVF-swindle-Couples-desperate-baby-sold-treatments-not-need-8-000.html#ixzz4RPm8N1kM