This archive report was first published on 22 August 2019.
Boosting Odds of Pregnancy with IVF ¶
Thursday, August 22, 2019
IVF, a technology used in assisted reproduction, has gained acceptance in Kenya, with the number of Kenyans seeking the technology increasing.
However, IVF does not guarantee a pregnancy, and success rates vary between clinics, ranging from 40 percent to 50 percent in some cases.
Dr. Charles Muteshi, a fertility specialist at Aga Khan University Hospital, advises couples to be emotionally and financially prepared for the procedure, which can be costly, with prices ranging from Sh370,000 to Sh700,000 per cycle.
Young women are more likely to have good quality eggs with a higher chance of getting pregnant through IVF compared to older women.
Dr. Joshua Noreh, a medical director and fertility specialist at Nairobi IVF Centre, says genetic screening of embryos before implantation can increase IVF success rates and identify defects that may cause miscarriage or failure of the embryo to implant.
The cost of genetic screening ranges from Sh100,000 to Sh300,000, an additional charge to IVF, and depends on whether a couple wants the embryo tested for over 600 inherited diseases or just chromosome analysis.
Another advancement in the fertility industry is the availability of donor eggs and embryos, which can be sourced online and imported, with prices ranging from Sh30,000 to Sh200,000.
Dr. Wanjiru Ndegwa-Njuguna, a fertility specialist who founded Footsteps to Fertility Centre in Nairobi, says IVF acceptance has risen due to financially empowered couples, access to information, and willingness to scour the world for solutions.
At her Nairobi clinic, she does about 1,800 IVF cycles a year compared to less than 500 cycles five years ago.
Dr. Muteshi advises couples to consider IVF if they have been actively trying to conceive for more than four years, when a woman has blocked Fallopian tubes, no eggs in the ovaries, and a man has no sperms.
