Laser-Assisted Hatching: The future technology trailblazer for IVF Treatment with Improved Success Rates
The LAH procedure takes place on the third day of the cycle during IVF, when the embryo is still within the lab. During this process, a particular laser is used to create a tear within the zona pellucida. The laser treatment is the most controlled and safest and most effective technique. Though it sounds like a simple process of cracking a small crack in zona pellucida, it requires proper procedures and an experienced technician to do the job. The embryology lab should also be well-equipped with specialized instruments to handle this advanced technology. The whole process is pretty quick and happens within a few seconds.
This is the technique that involves laser shots that soften the zona pellucida to ease opening. In this technique, the laser does not come into contact with the embryo, and therefore, it is carried out carefully and with a high degree of precision. This method ensures safety for the embryo.
Indications for LAH
It does not mean you will be recommended LAH compulsorily in case you are undergoing IVF. Professionals think that LAH could result in a successful pregnancy in some classes of couples. If considering all your medical records and infertility history, your fertility doctor can make a decision whether LAH can help you or not.
In general, assisted hatching will be fruitful if you have the following conditions:
- Two or more failed IVF cycles.
- If the level of FSH in you is high.
- The quality of your embryo is not up to the mark, or embryos produced are of poor quality.
- More than 38 years of age
- You have unexplained infertility.
Older women produce eggs with a thicker zona pellucida, also referred to as the outer egg shell. The same problem is also observed in women who produce a high level of follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH). In such cases, the egg fails to hatch and does not get attached to the womb. Assisted hatching can prove useful for all these conditions of infertility.
Also, many researches have shown that the zona pellucida is thick in frozen or thawed embryos, which cancels easy hatching and implantation. Laser-assisted hatching will create a perforation on the hard outer cover, therefore allowing for easy imbedding of the embryo.
The second important thing to be known is that the process of hatching is a natural process, and in most cases of IVF, an embryo implants into the womb. Failure to hatch is a very rare cause of infertility; therefore, it may require a modern approach to solve this problem. Also, it is very significant to consult your fertility doctor regarding the pros and cons of undergoing LAH treatment for your case. Also, you need to consider the extra cost of such a procedure.
Advantages of LAH
Compared to other assisted hatching procedures, Laser-assisted hatching is more precise. The LAH procedure does not involve the manual handling of the embryo; it is thus minimally damaged. The laser's accuracy is programmed; thus its accuracy can be determined without damaging the embryo. Chances for achieving pregnancy increase with Laser-assisted hatching.
Risks associated during LAH
Risk is similar to other IVF or ICSI cycles. Laser hatching disrupts the embryos natural process of hatching; so it carries some risk. The embryo might incur fatal damage. This may happen before, or right after the embryo transfer. In either case, pregnancy will not take place. Even after LAH, the embryo might fail to hatch fully.
LAH is also linked to multiple pregnancies. Mainly, IVF is linked with multiple pregnancies, and with the LAH procedure, the risk increases even more. This results in high-risk pregnancies but in less than 1% cases.
If you feel that LAH causes congenital defects in babies, this is completely wrong as thousands of studies have been conducted and proved that LAH procedure does not cause any kind of congenital disability.
Why choose Dr. Kamini Rao Hospitals
Laser assisted hatching is known to improve chances of implantation and it indeed enhances the chances of pregnancy, and still, there is a scope of success if IVF fails due to LAH. Discuss everything with your fertility doctor so that you can make the right decision.
Hatching as mentioned above is completely a mandatory process for pregnancy. But if the embryo doesn't get implanted in some way, then LAH proves to be the treatment of choice. In a failed IVF cycle, this LAH procedure has a potential to achieve a positive pregnancy in couples. A procedure of laser-assisted hatching, conducted by an experienced fertility doctor or embryologist, can be helpful for overcoming the thick shell embryos problem. This would raise the possibility of implantation, pregnancy and even birth rate. This has made there a tremendous success of using LAH technique with IVF in couples who are much older and those in cases of failure with IVF. It extra improved the rate of pregnancies resultant from cryopreserved embryos.