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IVF step by step: how it works
Reading about IVF for the first time means facing a lot of terminology at once. This guide explains the whole process in plain language — what happens, in which order, and why.
Reading about IVF for the first time means facing a lot of terminology at once. This guide explains the whole process in plain language — what happens, in which order, and why.
IVF (in-vitro fertilisation) literally means fertilisation in glass: the egg is fertilised not in the body but in the laboratory. In practice the ICSI variant is usually used: the embryologist places one selected sperm cell directly into the egg, so fertilisation is not left to chance.
In a natural cycle, one egg matures. To increase the chance of good embryos, the doctor uses hormone injections to mature several follicles at once. This takes about ten to twelve days, with an ultrasound every two to three days to monitor growth and adjust the dose.
Once the follicles are large enough, a trigger injection starts the final maturation. Exactly 36 hours later the eggs are collected: a short procedure under light sedation, through the vagina, without an incision. The same day, the sperm is analysed and prepared.
After fertilisation, the embryos grow in an incubator for three to five days. Around day five, a well-developed embryo is called a blastocyst. The embryologist follows the cell division closely and identifies the embryo with the best development. How that selection works is explained in our guide on embryo quality.
One or two embryos are placed in the uterus through a thin catheter — painless and done in minutes. Then the waiting begins: about ten days until the pregnancy test. What to expect in that period is covered in our guide on the period after the transfer.
At Human First the full journey in Istanbul takes around 18 days; if you start stimulation at home, you fly out on day 9 and stay about 10 days. How the medical team builds the treatment and which techniques are used when is explained on How we treat.
This guide is general information, not personal medical advice. Submit your file free of obligation — the medical team reviews it and you hear from us within 7 working days.