Assisted Conception treatment
IUI
The Countess of Chester hospital is licensed by the HFEA to
provide intra Uterine Insemination (IUI). This procedure usually
involves the stimulation of the ovaries with medication (usually in
the form of a very short course of injections) to produce between 1
and 3 eggs, the response of the ovaries are carefully monitored
with ultrasound scanning by our team of clinicians to ensure
the correct response. Once treatment is deemed suitable an
injection is given to complete the maturation of the eggs 24-36
hours before a prepared sample from the partner is inseminated into
the uterus using a soft catheter passed through the cervix (a
procedure similar to a smear test).
All these procedures will take place in the fertility unit at
the Countess of Chester Hospital.
Transport IVF/ ICSI
The fertility Unit at the Countess of Chester hospital is
licensed to provide transport IVF and ICSI in conjunction with the
Hewitt Centre at the Liverpool Women's Hospital.
As a transport assisted conception unit all patients are seen in
the IVF clinic at the Countess of Chester, where all their
investigations and consenting are undertaken. Patients can also
have any counselling performed at the Countess before undergoing
stimulation of the ovaries with injections. All monitoring of
ovarian response is undertaken at the Countess of Chester. When the
ovaries reach optimum response the patient will undergo an oocyte
collection at the Countess under sedation which usually takes no
more than 15-20 minutes. All sedation is carried out by a
Consultant anaesthetist with the help of an anaesthetic assistant
in accordance with all the best practice guidelines. The collected
eggs are identified by an embryologist in our laboratory prior to
transport to the Hewitt Centre
After collection the oocytes are transported by the patients
partner to the Hewitt Centre where the eggs are either mixed
or injected with the partners sperm (see treatment), to
create embryos.
The embryos are kept within the Hewitt Centre before being
transferred back to the patient 2,3 or 5 days after collection
depending upon the number and quality of the embryos obtained.
Any surplus embryos that are suitable to be frozen will be
cryopreserved and kept in the Hewitt Centre until required by the
patient for further treatment.
Transport Assisted Conception and the HFEA
All treatment in the form of Assisted conception in the UK has
to be licensed by the HFEA, the countess of Chester hospital is
licensed ton provide IUI treatment on site as well as procuring
gametes for transport IVF/ICSI. Transport IVF at the Countess is
provided in conjunction with the Hewitt Centre at the Liverpool
Women's Hospital and as such all licensable activity in conjunction
with patients treatment (The mixing/ injection of eggs and sperm,
the creation of embryos and their subsequent transfer or storage)
can only be done at the Hewitt Centre who hold the license for
treatment.
For more details of the License for transport IVF please
see/ contact:
The Hewitt Centre for Reproduction
Liverpool Womens Hospital
Crown Street
Liverpool
L8 7SS
www.lwh.me.uk
The Human fertilisation & Embryology Authority
Finsbury Tower
103-105 Bunhill Row
London
EC1Y 8HF
www.hfea.gov.uk