Intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) is fundamentally the micro-injection of a sperm within an oocyte. This technique is commonly used in tandem with IVF when males have infertility issues like low sperm mobility. When done under the right conditions, ICSI is one of the most precise methods that can help you conceive a child.
The steps leading to ICSI are practically the same as in IVF. What is unique about ICSI, is that we refrain from simply mixing the sperm and egg in a petri dish and ‘wait’ for fertilization to take place. Instead, we take an ultra fine needle and directly inject the sperm into the egg. The fertilized egg is then incubated as with traditional IVF practices. Once the egg is in the 8 cell division stage (determined by embryologist), we can transfer the embryo back into the uterus.
Who is suitable candidate?
Usually, when males have low sperm counts or when sperm mobility is compromised, we recommend ICSI treatment.
