# IUI VS IVF



## Becs64 (Nov 30, 2006)

Hi, I have done 1 cycle of IUI, which is being done privately at a london clinic, my 2ww finished last week, with a BFN.  I wasn't sure how I had reacted to drugs (menopur) as on day 3 scan I had one folicle, which is all I ended up with when they did the biz!  I did ask when I rang to book my appointment if dosage of menupur would be increased, and told by nurse that it probably would be given I ended up with the same amount of folicles as I started with before the drugs.  However, when I went today to start again, I was told that they would not increase medication to give me more folicles as one good one was the aim.  Because I wasn't sure I was seen by the another doctor - who told me that given my age (42) that IUI was really a waste of time (shame as I had already done one cycle) and I should move on to IVF - I left, very confused and have abandoned this cycle of IUI.  I have now had conflicting advise from two doctors at the same clinic as first doctor said 3 folicles was the aim, this doctor said 1 was the aim - can anybody help?


----------



## Minkey (May 22, 2004)

Becs,

No sure that I can answer your question fully but it may depend on why you have problems in the first place.  My clinic (also private, in London) told me that they aimed to get one good follie for me & I have unexplained fertility.  But my IUI was inmedicated initially, so I don't have experience of medicated either

Not sure that that helps you at all?

Minkey x


----------



## aitch (Sep 6, 2006)

Becs

I'm not an expert but here is what I have been told.  We like Minkey have unexplained infertility and from what I understand IUI is usually the first start of treatment for this.  I had a medicated cycle of IUI and was told that the aim was to get 3 good follies (we're at a private clinic in Kent) - they would not do it with any more than that and as I overstimmed, I had the choice to have 4 removed or to abandon the cycle.  Unfortunately we got a BFN too.

We have been back for our review meeting and have gone through all the things that could have gone wrong and why we did not achieve that longed for BFP.  It seems that with IUI you do not have any diagnostic answers - we do not know if any eggs fertilised but did not embed, or whether any actually fertilised (with most IUIs you don't even know if the follies have eggs in them, but we are fairly sure mine did because they removed 4).  So we have been given the choice, bearing in mind our ages, to have another go at IUI and potentially still not get any answers, or do a round of IVF to see if that gives us a BFP or if not, tells us what is going wrong.  If we get good fert rates with IVF but still get a BFN we can always go back to IUI knowing that there is no reason why it should not work.  

My guess would be that this is what the second dr is going on about - with your age (no offence meant  ) it may be better to get some answers earlier.  I'm really not sure what the 1st dr was on about with aiming to only get one follie - it seems silly when unless your problem is you are not generally ovulating, you would have had one folllie anyway.

Hope this helps  and good luck with whatever you decide to do.

H xx


----------



## Becs64 (Nov 30, 2006)

thanks to both those answers - 

I have made an appointment to go back to see the original doctor (who is the director at the clinic) and ask why his deputy believes we are not giving ourselves the best shot with IUI.  When I asked about whether they would increase the drugs to give me another follicle, I was made to feel like I was asking for a litter, the doctor quoted Mandy whateverher name was, who had 7 children, and asked if I wanted that. I am angry that a doctor thinks that - I mean if basic medication did not give me more than 1 follicle which I started off with at start of cycle by myself, I am trying to cheat the system and have more than 1 baby - 1 baby is all I want!!!!!

It means we are having a month off from drugs, and pessaries (deep joy), and armed with an ovulation kit will basically go at it hammer and tong over the Christmas holidays!  DD  will be having lots of afternoon naps!

Oh why could I have not met DH when I was 26!

Thanks for both your support and time to answer questions


----------



## melandcrispy (Dec 5, 2006)

Hi Becs, 

I've had 8 IUIs in a row and there was only one of them where I had two decent sized follicles, for all the rest I only had one. They put me on 75mg of Menopur at the start and have never changed the dose since. They explained that if there were more than 3 follicles produced they wouldn't do the procedure because of the risk of multiple pregnancies (they never even mentioned an option of having some of the follicles emptied). Because of this I have never pushed for higher doses of drugs as I'd rather do an IUI with one follicle, than no IUI at all. 

It's amazing to me how medical opinons from staff at the same clinic can differ so much. They need to get their acts together as it's simply not acceptable for a patient to be left so confused and frustrated.


----------

