Researchers in a 2026 guideline review provide evidence-based recommendations from ESHRE on ovarian stimulation for IVF/ICSI, covering protocols, medications, monitoring, and safety.
Lab protocols
PGT-A contamination, sometimes reported as “no result,” is poorly studied, but a 2026 study found it’s rare and that undetected contamination can distort PGT results, highlighting the importance of contamination detection in testing.
A 2026 study found that a microfluidic device called FIND-Chip can recover additional eggs from follicular fluid that may have been missed by manual searching after an egg retrieval, with one live birth reported.
Researchers in a 2024 study showed that by artificially removing the embryo’s zona (shell) right after fertilization reduced fragmentation, improved blastocyst development, and led to live births in patients with repeated IVF failure, though the findings are still preliminary and need confirmation in larger trials.
This post explains how embryos can split during IVF, especially at the blastocyst stage. It covers the timing of splitting, the different types of identical twins, the factors that make splitting more likely, and how IVF labs can reduce the risk of twins after single embryo transfer.
A 2024 meta-analysis combined the results of 10 studies to show that embryos that are thawed for PGT-A, or rebiopsied after inconclusive results, have lower chances of pregnancy and live birth, with higher miscarriage rates.
This post traces the evolution of PGT-A testing in IVF, from early FISH and microarray methods to modern NGS and emerging technologies like nanopore sequencing, highlighting how each advancement improved accuracy, speed, and embryo assessment.
This post summarizes the 2025 ESHRE/ALPHA Istanbul consensus on egg and embryo assessment, offering patients a clear overview of how embryologists evaluate and rank eggs, zygotes, and embryos based on updated international guidelines.
Researchers performed rescue IVM on immature eggs collected from poor prognosis patients, and found that a large number became mature and fertilized, allowing about 1 in 12 patients to have a live birth that they wouldn’t have had otherwise.
Researchers in a 2023 study found that older women that are triggered earlier produce immature eggs that may be more competent than mature eggs after rescue IVM.
Researchers in a 2023 study used rescue IVM and found that many immature eggs became mature and had comparable fertilization and euploid rates to sibling mature eggs, although there was a decrease in blastocyst formation rates.
Researchers in a 2023 study used a procedure called “rescue in vitro maturation” to culture immature eggs collected after retrieval overnight, and found that a high proportion became mature and had comparable fertilization to sibling mature eggs, with many going on to form euploids.
Researchers in a 2023 study share the results of a survey that evaluates the use and attitude of natural cycle FETs in US clinics, which some studies have recently shown can lead to improved pregnancy outcomes compared to medicated FETs.
Researchers in a 2022 study compared outcomes from mature M2 eggs and M1-M2 eggs that underwent “rescue in vitro maturation” and found that M2 eggs had improved fertilization, blastocyst conversion and euploidy rates, with no difference in pregnancy or live birth rates.
The post discusses various frozen embryo transfer protocols, which includes a medicated FET, natural cycle FET (true natural/modified natural), and mild ovarian stimulated FET, along with their scheduling. In addition, it examines whether one FET protocol is superior to another, the relevance of the corpus luteum in medicated vs natural cycle FETs, and optimal progesterone levels.
Researchers in a 2021 review combined multiple studies on assisted hatching and found no clear improvement in live birth rates, though clinical pregnancy rates were slightly higher and the chance of multiple pregnancy increased.
