What is the process of IUI?
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Consultation
Patients should first consult an infertility doctor, provide all available information and discuss all the possible stages of your fertility treatment plan, including the suitable ovulation-inducing medication or other fertility medication. The reason why it’s so important to consult a professional before your doctor's office for sperm sample insemination is so that you can rule out certain conditions, like cervical factor infertility and ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome.
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Scan and blood fertility tests
After you’ve called your donor for insemination to select the best type of fertility treatment, your doctor will prescribe certain blood tests. For many women, it can be: AMH, antral follicle count, pelvic ultrasound, smears and general blood tests. For a man, it can be a spermogram, DNA fragmentation of sperm and karyotype.
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Patient preparation
If the procedure is performed in the patient's natural cycle, you need to inform the doctor about your first day of the menstrual cycle. On the first or second day, your doctor will invite you for an ultrasound. After that, he or she will prescribe 2-4 more ultrasounds for you to monitor ovulation.
If we are talking about a cycle of fertility medications for intrauterine insemination (IUI) to prepare for the procedure, in this case, based on your tests, the doctor will prescribe a protocol of stimulation and provide you with prescriptions for the purchase of fertility drugs. You will also need to have an ultrasound on day 1-2 of the cycle and 2-3 more ultrasounds later, while taking your medication on a schedule. By doing ultrasounds, your doctor will determine your ovulation day and invite you to the clinic.
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Sperm preparation
It is possible to use a vitrified semen sample provided in the clinic an hour before intrauterine insemination. Embryologists perform washing and preparation of healthy sperm in an appropriate environment. They select only the most active sperms for fertilization and put the material into the catheter.
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Insemination
Insemination itself occurs on the appropriate day of ovulation of the patient. It does not require surgery or anesthesia. Often the insemination procedure is performed in the office of a reproductive doctor. The embryologist passes the catheter with the finished material to the reproductive doctor, who, in turn, injects the material into the uterus. After the invasive procedure, the patient remains in a supine position for up to 30 minutes.
In case you experience any discomfort or vaginal bleeding during the next several days after intrauterine insemination (IUI), you should contact your doctor immediately.
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Pregnancy test
Doctors recommend doing a pregnancy test 2 weeks after the procedure. When the test shows a positive result, patients need to make an appointment for an initial ultrasound in two weeks. The doctor will also prescribe you further fertility drugs.