EmbryoScope Technology Now Available in Florida
The latest in cutting-edge technology, The EmbryoScope, is now available to couples seeking fertility treatment in Florida at IVF FLORIDA Reproductive Associates.
The EmbryoScope is a sophisticated and noninvasive technique that frequently photographs a single embryo's development from unfertilized egg to the blastocyst stage over a 7 day period of time. Comprised of an incubator, microscope and time-lapse camera embryo development is monitored from the time of conception, allowing fertility specialists to select the most viable embryos during in-vitro fertilization treatment.
This technique allows for continual monitoring of the embryo's development without removing it from a perfectly controlled environment. Traditional embryo monitoring methods required fertility professionals to remove embryos from an incubator once a day to study development through a microscope.
"We are now able to select embryos with unprecedented precision," explains Dr. Wayne Maxson of IVF FLORIDA Reproductive Associates. "This new technology may help patients achieve their family by keeping a close eye on the embryo."
The EmbryoScope takes photos of each embryo every five to 20 minutes for the entire duration of the incubation period, allowing for comprehensive monitoring of embryo development. The data from each embryo's cell division and appearance are further analyzed by image analysis software, which also creates a unique time-lapse video for each embryo and allows embryologist to analyze hundreds of images compared to the current 2 images used to select embryos today. Abnormal embryo development can be detected without harming the embryo, allowing the most viable embryos to be selected during in-vitro fertilization.
"The EmbryoScope provides a technique that is on the leading-edge of fertility technology and we are proud to offer this service to our patients, continuing IVF FLORIDA's mission of providing state-of-the-art procedures in the treatment of infertility," adds Dr. David Hoffman of IVF FLORIDA Reproductive Associates.
"This technology allows us to select embryos that may have a higher success of implanting & enables the laboratory to implement a more successful single embryo transfer program," explains Kathy Miller, Scientific Director at IVF FLORIDA Reproductive Associates. "This technology can also be used with comprehensive chromosomal screening."
The technology can prove particularly beneficial for couples who have done multiple IVF cycles or have experienced recurrent miscarriage. By watching the embryos develop, fertility professionals can also monitor abnormal cell splitting, potentially indicating an embryo with genetic abnormality.
Data gathered from other centers have shown a 30-50% increase in pregnancy rates and lower multiple birth rate.
There are currently an estimated 12 centers offering the EmbryoScope across the country, with IVF FLORIDA Reproductive Associates the first to offer this technology in the state of Florida.
