How Medfem Fertility Clinic Maintains its Great IVF Success Rates

Our primary success rate – represented by the percentage of clinical pregnancies per embryo transfer procedure (CPR/ET) – is well above the national rates in South Africa and compares to the best internationally.

At Medfem Fertility Clinic, we measure our success by the number of ‘livebirths’, because the ultimate goal for us is a healthy baby in your arms.

IVF success rates in general

Since the 1980’s IVF has been the standard treatment for infertility. In the beginning, IVF treatment success rates were not what they are today. Even in the early 1990’s, the success rate of IVF treatment was lower than 10%.

Today, however, the success rate for a single cycle of IVF treatment is around 20%. That is close to the rate of natural conception in couples with no fertility challenges, which means IVF treatment can now provide success rates that are comparable – and even superior – to those of nature.

As a result, over the last 30 years, more than 8 million babies have been born worldwide as a result of IVF treatment.

IVF success rates at Medfem Fertility Clinic

At Medfem Fertility Clinic, we are very proud of our IVF pregnancy rates that are much higher than the generally expected 20%! Our IVF success rates are around 50% and consistent with the highest success rates reported amongst clinics worldwide.

While even the general 20% success rate of IVF is amazing, it does mean that in many cases, couples require more than one cycle of IVF treatment to achieve a pregnancy. What is very important to realise in this regard is that your chances of success increases – not decreases – with each IVF cycle.

Some patients will fall pregnant with the first IVF cycle, others will fall pregnant with the second IVF cycle and by the third IVF cycle, the pregnancy rate increases to as high as 92.6%!

Why is Medfem Fertility Clinic’s success rates so high?

At Medfem Fertility Clinic, you are in the hands of consummate professionals who care.

At our purpose-built, state-of-the-art facilities conveniently located in Sandton, Johannesburg in South Africa, you will find our world-class team of fertility experts providing couples with cutting-edge fertility treatments that continue to deliver superior fertility results. Medfem Fertility Clinic is also registered as an Accredited IVF (In-Vitro Fertilization) Unit with the Southern African Society for Reproductive Medicine and Gynaecological Endoscopy (SASREG), belongs to the African Network and Registry for Assisted Reproductive Technology, and is recognised internationally the International Committee Monitoring Assisted Reproductive Technologies (ICMART).

We believe that our IVF success rates are due to the fact that our fertility specialists at Medfem Fertility Clinic implement individualised IVF stimulation protocols, which are customised to each patient according to a multitude of factors, such as infertility diagnosis, age, weight/height, prior cycle outcome and prior reproductive history. In addition, Medfem Fertility Clinic offers the largest staff-to-patient ratio of any fertility clinic in South Africa, ensuring you receive the best care possible.

Our IVF success rates at Medfem Fertility Clinic can also be attributed to our status as a leader in the field of clinical infertility, embryology research and laboratory methodology, as well as highly trained staff and a solid investment in the latest advanced equipment.

We pride ourselves on not only keeping up with the latest science in our field, but also being innovators and early adopters of the best that technology has to offer. Our outstanding embryology team is devoted to the most progressive methods of embryo culture.

Covering every possibility

At Medfem Fertility Clinic, we do everything in our power to improve the chances of IVF success with individualised treatment plans and specialised protocols, based on 30 years of experience, and this is reflected in our excellent IVF success rates.

Notably, we empower our patients to boost their own chances of IVF success; address all existing medical conditions known to affect fertility, before a cycle of IVF treatment; and implement specialised protocols for patients who have experienced recurring IVF failures.

Empowering patients to boost their IVF success

A number of health factors in both partners affect the success of IVF treatment. This is because to create a healthy embryo (fertilised egg) that will become a pregnancy, healthy sperm and a healthy egg are needed.

The Medfem Fertility Clinic team spares no effort in assisting IVF patients to boost their chances of IVF success through lifestyle choices that improve the health of their sperm and eggs. These include maintaining a healthy body weight, taking nutrient supplements and avoiding smoking, alcohol and drugs that are all known to negatively affect fertility and the success of fertility treatments such as IVF.

In addition, one of the biggest factors in fertility and infertility treatments is stress, particularly what is called Time Urgency Perfectionism Stress or TUPS. For 25 years, the Medfem Fertility Clinic team has assisted patients to monitor and reduce their stress to improve their chances of IVF success.

Treating medical conditions known to affect fertility

A range of lifestyle diseases also create problems with egg and sperm quality and with implantation of an embryo, and at Medfem Fertility Clinic these conditions are treated before an IVF treatment cycle is commenced.

For example, hormones imbalances in either partner such as high insulin levels, high prolactin levels and or thyroid problems are treated before an IVF treatment cycle is attempted. Other conditions that are treated at Medfem Fertility Clinic before IVF treatment include fibroids, endometriosis, and problems with the fallopian tubes.

Specialised protocols for recurrent IVF failure

If an IVF treatment cycle did not result in a pregnancy, our team at Medfem goes back to the drawing board to achieve a better outcome.

For example, where poor egg quality could be the cause of the failure, we tailor the stimulation for egg retrieval or perhaps look at using donor eggs. Pre-genetic testing and assisted hatching are among the process we use to improve the chances of IVF success after recurrent failures, because we have witnessed the positive impact it has on the chances of a successful IVF outcome.

We also pay special attention to preparing the uterus before the embryo transfer, managing for elevated natural killer cells and monitoring the microbiome in the uterus, and using solutions such as EmbryoGlue(r), because our studies show that it increases pregnancy rates. Another protocol we include is to treat for blood clots, as we believe it makes a positive difference to our success rates.

At Medfem Fertility Clinic, we investigate all these and other possibilities that may affect the outcome of an IVF cycle before attempting an IVF treatment cycle, ensuring our patients have the very best chance of IVF success.

IVF treatment at Medfem Fertility Clinic

Choosing a top IVF fertility clinic with a leading success rate will provide you with the best chance of a successful IVF treatment cycle.

Our IVF clinic treats over a thousand patients each year with success rates that have consistently remained high and well above the national averages. We are proud to have played a role in bringing more than 18,000 babies into the world.

If you would like to know more about IVF treatment or if you would like to meet one of our specialists to find out if IVF is the right treatment for you, simply click here to book an initial consultation or contact us telephonically on +27 (11) 463 2244.

We look forward to meeting you at Medfem Fertility Clinic!