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Mini-stim™ IVF

Mini-IVF or Mini-stim™ IVF or Micro-IVF is an advanced reproductive technology that uses a gentler/milder ovulation induction to produce mature eggs than does conventional IVF. The objective of the ovulation induction with Mini-IVF is to produce two good embryos. A second objective is to make the IVF process as easy as possible for the couple (without sacrificing quality).

Most women under 35 years old do not require the full power of conventional IVF in order to achieve pregnancy.  When there are well defined problems such as male factor or tubal factor and their eggs are still of good quality, Mini-IVF may be a better approach for them than conventional IVF.  In such women, the pregnancy rate is about the same, the cost is about 2/3rds less, minimal medications are used, no or few embryos are wasted and the missed time from work is greatly reduced.

Most physicians believe that an ovulation induction that uses less medications and produces fewer embryos, produces better quality embryos than an ovulation induction that uses significantly higher doses of medications. Such an approach can result in significant savings in terms of both medications and monitoring. It can also be an easier process for a patient to undertake because of  fewer doctor visits and blood tests.  (About half of the monitoring visits are on weekends.)

For Mini-stim IVF, we use a mild ovulation induction similar to what we have used over the years for IUI. The approach is significantly more powerful than IUI.  For some groups of patients, it may be less effective than conventional IVF. However, the trade-off of possibly having to do more cycles to achieve pregnancy is compensated for by a lower cost and an easier experience.

Call us to learn more about Mini-IVF.   About two-thirds of patients planning to do conventional IVF could choose to do Mini-stim IVF (or IVM) instead and expect the same results.  This could save you 1/2 to 2/3rds of the cost of a conventional IVF cycle as well as saving you time and avoiding many injections and blood tests.