In vitro Fertilisation (IVF)

In vitro fertilisation is an assisted reproduction technique aimed primarily at a couple with problems getting pregnant, a very common situation nowadays, even in young couples of childbearing age.

In vitro treatment is the most sophisticated and precise technique in the assisted reproduction market.

At Operarme we offer you the In Vitro Fertilisation (IVF) treatment in Spain for 4.250 €, a fixed price with all the services necessary to successfully complete the treatment, as well as a network of fertility clinics of national and European reference, with one of the best pregnancy success rates. 

This treatment is mainly aimed at couples with fertility problems who wish to have a child. For this reason, it is important to go for an initial assessment consultation with a specialist in Assisted Reproduction to familiarise yourself with your case and find out the degree of fertility you have to undergo IVF treatment.

If you are thinking of resorting to In Vitro Fertilisation (IVF) treatment, we recommend that you first carry out the Couple Fertility Study, which, in addition to the assessment consultation that we offer, includes all the tests necessary to determine the viability of the treatment in your couple → Read more about the Couple Fertility Study.

Throughout this page you will find more detailed information about the treatment. However, you can contact us on +34 91 141 33 56, and our Patient Service team will answer any questions you may have.

In vitro Fertilisation (IVF) is an assisted reproduction technique aimed primarily at a couple or a woman with problems getting pregnant.

This technique consists of the fertilisation of an egg and a sperm (with the patient's partner's sperm or, on the other hand, donor sperm) in a laboratory, in order to obtain a viable embryo and subsequently implant it in the patient's uterus.

IVF treatment is currently one of the most successful treatments per attempt, surpassing even artificial insemination, and in most cases it is the first option for a couple or a woman who wants to have a child, with a success rate of up to 60% (although this always depends on the age range and health characteristics of the patient).

This technique involves a small surgical intervention, in which the eggs are extracted. It is a minor outpatient surgery, in which between 5 and 15 eggs are extracted, which will then be fertilised in the laboratory.

The high number of eggs extracted is the usual number and can be achieved thanks to the ovarian stimulation that forms part of the treatment process, which we will explain later on.

The main requirements include having healthy eggs, sperm that can fertilise them, and a uterus capable of carrying a pregnancy.

It is often thought that if these three factors are met, there is no need to resort to techniques such as in vitro or artificial insemination, but in many cases this has nothing to do with it. 

Below, we mention different problems that influence fertility problems and for which in vitro treatment is recommended:

• Low or no ovarian reserve: in this type of case, the patient may opt for in vitro treatment so as not to risk losing the minimum number of eggs she has, and thus ensure that at least one embryo can be fertilised.
• Women over 35 years of age: in this age group, the chances of getting pregnant decrease, and it can be very difficult to get pregnant naturally.
• Obstructed or damaged fallopian tubes: This obstruction means that a natural pregnancy is impossible, although it is possible to become pregnant through in vitro fertilisation, as long as the egg and the uterus function perfectly. 
• Endometriosis: patients suffering from endometriosis find it very difficult to get pregnant, and in many cases, they end up resorting to in vitro fertilisation.
• Low sperm count or obstruction: in the case of couples in which the male partner has a low sperm count, the in vitro option is recommended.
• Unexplained infertility: In some cases, although not the most common in a couple, the man and woman have viable reproductive tracts, but are unable to become pregnant. In these exceptional cases, in vitro fertilisation is recommended.
• Previous pathologies: women and men who have suffered in the past from an illness such as cancer and decided to preserve their eggs and sperm, resort to in vitro fertilisation.
• Unsuccessful artificial insemination: in cases where artificial insemination has been unsuccessful, in vitro treatment is recommended as a second option.

The effectiveness of in vitro fertilisation (IVF) depends on several factors, and can be up to 70% in women under 35 years of age, or between 40% and 65% in other cases. Despite depending on several factors, we can say that the number of successful cases of this treatment is very high.

In Vitro Fertilisation (IVF) treatment generally lasts between 16 and 18 days, always depending on the patient's ovarian response (this period includes from ovarian stimulation to embryo transfer):

• After having attended the first assessment consultation with one of our specialists, and having decided to go ahead with the treatment, the patient begins the first phase, and the most important of all, called ovarian stimulation. This phase lasts between 12-14 days depending on the patient's ovarian response.
• 32-40 hours after the end of the stimulation phase, the oocytes are extracted. This extraction takes about 15 minutes.
• Finally, 5-6 days after fertilisation, the embryo transfer is performed. This is the last phase of the treatment, in which the patient remains in the clinic for a short time (10 minutes) to rest after insertion of the embryo into the uterus.

If you and your partner are considering in vitro fertilisation in Spain, Operarme offers you a free and immediate assessment consultation with one of the assisted reproduction specialists at our collaborating specialised centres. 

You can request your assessment consultation through our website by clicking on the following banner, or by calling at +34 91 141 33 56.

Are you interested in undergoing an IVF treatment ?

Request a free and immediate appointment with our specialists in Assisted Reproduction

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Our Patient Service team will take your details, manage and confirm your consultation date, as well as answer any questions you may have about the process.

On the day of the appointment with the assisted reproduction specialists at one of our collaborating centres, the patient comes to the consultation, together with her partner, with the necessary documentation (our Patient Service team will tell the patient what documentation to bring on the day of the appointment) and all the complementary tests associated with her fertility problem so that the specialist can begin to familiarise himself with the case.

This type of assessment consultation is usually carried out in the following way: 

• Medical interview: in this consultation, the patient will inform the specialist of the reasons for attending this consultation and considering opting for a treatment such as in vitro fertilisation. The doctor will ask the couple, and specifically the patient, a series of questions about medical history, reproductive history, lifestyle, etc., as well as providing them with information about in vitro fertilisation treatment, its benefits, success rate, times, etc.
• Review of tests: in this consultation, the specialist also proceeds to review the medical tests provided by the couple regarding their infertility problems, in order to determine whether in vitro fertilisation is the best option for their particular case, or whether another type of assisted reproduction treatment should be recommended. If the couple has not previously undergone the Couple's Fertility Study, in which a blood test and a hormonal analysis are carried out to check the couple's fertility level, they can contact our team at Operarme, who will help them to arrange an appointment for the diagnostic tests prior to the consultation with the specialist. These diagnostic tests are not included in the free assessment consultation and must be paid for by the patient.
• Decision-making: after having reviewed the results of the tests and resolved the patient's doubts, the specialist will conclude the consultation, and the couple will decide at that moment or in the next few days to go ahead with the process and begin the in vitro treatment.

If the couple does not make a decision at the time of the consultation, they should contact our Patient Service team to indicate that they want to continue with the process and start treatment, once they have made their decision.

Once the decision has been made to start In Vitro Fertilisation treatment, our Patient Service team will arrange appointments with the clinic to begin the first part of the procedure.

Before starting the first phase, a semen sample is taken from the man to be analysed to determine its viability and capacity. This sample is then used to inseminate the woman's egg.

Once the insemination is complete, a transvaginal ultrasound is performed on the woman to determine her uterus and ovaries, repeating this test several times throughout the ovarian stimulation process to monitor the number and size of the follicles.

After these preliminary steps, if the specialist considers that all is well enough to continue the in vitro treatment, the 4-stage process begins:

Ovarian stimulation

The start of ovarian stimulation must coincide with the arrival of the woman's menstruation in order to produce an increase in the number of follicles.

The main objective of this first phase is to stimulate the patient's ovaries in order to obtain a certain number of eggs to maximise the chances of pregnancy. 

This part of the treatment consists of a daily injection to increase the size and number of follicles produced in order to achieve multiple ovulation for in vitro fertilisation.

During this period (12-14 days) an ultrasound follow-up is carried out to control and monitor the evolution of the number of follicles until the required number is achieved.

After the last injection of the ovarian stimulation phase, the egg retrieval procedure is scheduled for approximately 36 hours later.

Ovarian puncture

Once the ovarian stimulation stage is over, 36 hours after the last injection, the eggs are removed through an intervention known as ovarian puncture or transvaginal follicular puncture.

It is an outpatient procedure, simple and quick. Below we detail the steps followed by the medical team to perform the egg retrieval.

On the day of the egg retrieval, the couple comes to the hospital with the documentation required for admission. The patient is escorted to a waiting room where she will be asked to undress and change into operating theatre clothes. It is important to note that no jewellery or piercings should be worn for the operation.

Once in the operating theatre, the patient will meet the medical team that will perform the puncture: the specialist, the anaesthesiologist and an ATS who will assist during the surgery:

• First, the specialist will give the patient instructions on how to position herself on the examination table, with the necessary posture being the same as for a conventional cytology.
• Next, the anaesthesiologist will apply sedation to the patient. In this type of procedure, only local or regional anaesthesia is used, never general anaesthesia.
• Once the patient is sedated, the specialist begins the extraction.
• He first introduces a needle via the transvaginal route, guided by an ultrasound scanner that allows him to visualise the inside of the pelvic cavity, to pass through the wall of the vagina and thus reach the ovaries.
• The follicles are then aspirated and the follicular fluid is collected in tubes, which are kept in order to preserve the fluid and then sent to the laboratory. 
• In most cases, there is a possibility that during the puncture, the fluid will come out red. This blood will be removed in the laboratory to facilitate fertilisation.
• Once all the follicular fluid has been extracted, the procedure is completed and the patient is awakened.

This procedure lasts approximately 15 minutes. After the puncture, the patient is transferred to a recovery room where she remains until she recovers from the anaesthesia.

The next phase of the in vitro treatment is insemination and fertilisation in the laboratory.

Fertilisation and embryo culture

After completing the extraction, the samples are taken to the laboratory where any blood that may have been extracted with the liquid and could affect the oocytes is first removed.

The eggs are then washed and sorted. This procedure is very important and requires precision, which is why it is necessary to contact the best possible medical and technological team, as is the case with the team of professionals that make up our collaborating clinics, which have professionals with more than 30 years of experience in assisted reproduction. 

After classification, the oocytes are left in a culture medium. While the oocytes are being prepared, the specialists begin to prepare the man's sperm sample in order to isolate the sperm to be used for fertilisation.

Two different forms of insemination can be carried out using the in vitro technique:

• In vitro fertilisation by microinjection (ICSI): in this approach, the eggs are fertilised by means of microinjections in which a sperm is introduced directly into each egg.
• Classical in vitro fertilisation (IVF): this technique consists of placing approximately 25,000 spermatozoa (previously treated and selected) in contact with each recovered oocyte using a suitable culture medium, and then incubating them at 37ºC until fertilisation occurs by itself.

In this case, the specialists will approach the fertilisation through the Classic In Vitro technique.

After insemination, it is necessary to wait a few hours or even a whole day to check how many eggs have been fertilised. The next step is the culture of the embryo.

Once fertilised, these eggs become pre-embryos for the next 5-6 days, during which the lab team will monitor them regularly to make sure they are growing properly and their cells are actively dividing.

The laboratory team will carry out this monitoring through a method known as Time Lapse, which consists of actively monitoring the entire embryo culture, and then selecting the embryos that are most likely to be viable and increase the patient's chances of pregnancy. 

Once the embryos are ready, the embryo is transferred to the woman 3 to 5 days after the egg retrieval surgery, depending on the case of each patient.

Embryo transfer

Between three and five days after fertilisation, the last phase of the treatment is performed: the embryo transfer or introduction of the embryo into the uterus.

This process is performed on an outpatient basis and does not require anaesthesia.

For this procedure, it is advisable for the patient to come with a full bladder to facilitate ultrasound visualisation.

The embryo transfer procedure is performed by the gynaecologist using a fine cannula that is inserted through the vagina until it reaches the end of the uterus. Through this catheter the embryos are channelled and placed in the uterus.

After implantation, the patient is always advised to rest for the rest of the day and resume her daily activities the following day. 

If one of these embryos implants in the lining of the uterus (endometrium) and begins to grow, the desired pregnancy occurs.

The remaining embryos are preserved in latest technology banks designed to avoid cross-contamination.

After completing the embryo transfer and implantation, the patient must follow the specific instructions of the specialists in order to promote the successful implantation of the embryo in the uterus.

Twelve to fourteen days after the last phase of the in vitro treatment, the patient must go to the hospital for a pregnancy test to check whether the treatment has been successful.

What happens if there are leftover embryos?

During the in vitro fertilisation process, a maximum of 2-3 embryos are implanted in the uterus, which is why there are always viable embryos left over. The patient can decide to preserve them by cryopreservation, in order to make use of them in a future in vitro process.

However, this cryopreservation treatment is not included in the fixed price of the treatment.

When should I contact the doctor after IVF?

The patient has a series of control and revision consultations that the clinic team will indicate during the post-IVF treatment process. 

Despite these consultations, it is always recommended that if the patient notices any of the following situations at any time, she should see a doctor immediately: 

• Fever temperature higher than 38 ºC 
• Pain in the pelvic area
• Vaginal bleeding
• Blood in the urine

In Vitro Fertilisation (IVF) is an effective and safe treatment that provides an opportunity for couples who are unable to have children naturally, and wish to become parents.

This treatment involves a series of complex procedures to improve fertility and achieve the goal of getting the patient pregnant.

Every treatment has its advantages and disadvantages related to the treatment process itself, or to the subsequent IVF phase.

In this section we will discuss the most important advantages or benefits and the possible risks that may be involved in this assisted reproduction treatment.

Advantages of the IVF technique

• It allows couples, or single women, who have difficulties in getting pregnant, to fulfil their desire to become parents.
• The success rates of in vitro fertilisation are higher than other assisted reproduction techniques, given that fertilisation is achieved in a laboratory, directly implanting the embryo in the uterus.
• It favours fertilisation in patients with problems such as blocked fallopian tubes or tubal ligation, without affecting the success rate of IVF, thanks to the follicular puncture technique.
• Another advantage is the embryo quality, as this assisted reproduction technique allows the evolution of the embryos to be observed day by day from their fertilisation in the laboratory until the embryos are transferred to the patient. Therefore, this process allows specialists to select the highest quality embryos with the best chances of implantation. 
• Vitrification technique: after the ovarian stimulation and completion of the embryo transfer, there are usually embryos left over that the patient can decide to keep in case she needs to repeat the process in the future, because the first attempt was unsuccessful, or in case she wants to save them to have a second child in the future. This can be achieved thanks to vitrification.

Disadvantages of the IVF technique

• This treatment involves the patient undergoing daily injections that may cause bruising or tenderness in the area.
• In rare cases, during the ovarian stimulation phase, what is known as ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome may occur, which causes fluid accumulation in the abdomen that may require drainage.
• Complications during egg retrieval surgery are not common, although the possible risks involved in any type of surgery due to anaesthesia, bleeding or infection of the operated area, in this case, the ovaries, should always be noted.
• Possibility of multiple pregnancies, as in some cases up to 3 embryos are implanted at the same time.
• Possibility that pregnancy does not occur in the first attempt, and it is necessary to repeat the process.

• All-inclusive price: When you have your In Vitro Fertilisation Treatment with Operarme the advantages are many. Firstly, the price of the treatment is all-inclusive, which means that there are no surprises at the end. In addition, Operarme provides you with a medical service contract in which it guarantees the price and everything included in the in vitro fertilisation treatment.
• The best assisted reproduction team: All fertility and assisted reproduction treatments provided by Operarme throughout Spain are carried out by the specialised team of the best national clinics in Assisted Reproduction, with more than 30 years providing this service.
• Personalised attention: In addition to the personal, close and attentive treatment that couples will receive in the clinics where we provide the service, the couple will have a personal Operarme patient care advisor who will help them throughout the process.
• Hospital environment: Maximum security by guaranteeing that the entire process is carried out in a hospital environment, with the entire process being carried out in the main private hospitals in the provinces in which we work.
• Partial refund clause: Another important aspect of Operarme's medical services contract is the inclusion of a partial refund clause in the event that the couple, or due to medical advice, decides to interrupt the in vitro fertilisation process. The amount refunded will depend on the stage in the process at which it is decided to stop. If you have any questions about this clause, you can contact us through a contact form or by calling at +34 91 141 33 56.
• No waiting: the consultation with the Assisted Reproduction team through Operarme is free and immediate. In addition, when the couple decides to undergo In Vitro Fertilisation Treatment (IVF) it begins immediately.

Assess your case and start your IVF treatment now

Request a free and immediate consultation with our specialists in Assisted Reproduction

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