Why do genetic testing ?

Question

Hi,
I had my first successful fresh transfer last month, doing my first ultrasound Monday. I am very causiously happy because i have seen so many of you get their BFP followed by very sad news … 
Anyway, I did it in switzerland and no one talked to me about genetic testing. It was fresh so i guess they didn’t test, why is it so important to test? 
Thank you 🙏

Answer

I tested my embryos due to a history of miscarriages for unknown reasons. Since early miscarriage is usually caused by chromosomal abnormalities, it made sense to verify these embryos were normal. I had all 3 embryos tested and 2 came back normal. I’m so glad I did it. I’m now 11 weeks pregnant.

Answer

I think it’s a personal choice and also depends heavily on age/diagnosis, and what the couple wishes… and I’ve also read on here that it seems to be more prevalent in the US, but I could be wrong about that. I’ve done 2 retrieval’s (with 2 diff RE) and neither RE recommended testing. This is probably due to my age and the fact that I did not have a history of loss. I just couldn’t get pregnant. My husband and I didn’t even have carrier screening on us.. it wasn’t even brought up during the initial consult. We personally didn’t want to PGS test..The chance (even if slim) of healthy embryos being discarded was something we weren’t okay with. I know we have some embryos im sure that aren’t destined to make it, but it’s a chance we were willing to take. It’s definitely a great resource for many! I was 30 at my first transfer and 33 for my most recent. Let your body do it’s thing… congratulations!! Wish you a healthy 9 months 🤍♥️

Answer

Testing is helpful if you have a history of miscarriage or if you’re over 35 since that is usually the scary age when we start producing more chromosomally abnormal eggs/embryos. Some people also like to test their embryos for genetic disorders if they are a known carrier for something. 
I was 36 at the time of my egg retrieval so my dr recommended testing to avoid possibly transferring an aneuploidy embryo. Out of our 9 frozen/tested embryos only 4 came back as normal, so we only kept those 4 normal ones. I didn’t want to take the chance of transferring an abnormal embryo then dealing with the heartbreak of a miscarriage if it didn’t work out. If you are young then you have a good chance of having success with an untested embryo so I would try not to worry too much and remain hopeful for your sweet baby!

Answer

Here is the video we watched that accompanied our testing kit. I think it did a nice job of explaining the importance of testing.
https://youtu.be/TvGALYJXhBw

Answer

I was over 35 when I did IVF but I wouldn’t say my doctor recommended it. He presented it as an option and left the decision to me and my partner. I opted for genetic testing because I wanted to reduce the likelihood of miscarriage. I don’t at all regret it and am currently pregnant from a genetically tested embryo but unless you suffer from recurrent miscarriages or are a carrier of a genetic condition, it’s not medically necessary.

Why do genetic testing ?

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