November is Prematurity Awareness Month. In the United States, the organization known as the March of Dimes leads the fight for the health of all moms and babies to raise awareness about the need to give babies a healthy start in life. An estimated 15 million babies around the world are born each year prematurely. More than one million of them do not survive their early birth. The March of Dimes has identified pregnancies with twins or triplets as one of the three risk factors for preterm labor and premature birth.
The American Pregnancy Association supports this reporting that almost 60% of twins are delivered preterm, while 90% of triplets are preterm. This invariably means a NICU stay to ensure the health of these babies.
What is eSet?
Single embryo transfer, also known as eSet (Elective Single Embryo Transfer), is recommended as the healthiest option for both mother and child. Mothers of twins are about two and a half times more likely than those of singletons to have pre-eclampsia and multiples, can often end up in the NICU.
Why Consider eSet?
When exploring how many embryos to transfer, there are many factors to consider. However, the Society of Assisted Reproduction (SART) and the American Society of Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) suggested guidelines are primarily based on a woman’s age.
Since there is a decline in a woman’s fertility the older she becomes, this would mean that the number of embryos transferred would increase. For example, if a patient under 35 years old asked her doctor how many embryos to transfer, her doctor might recommend eSet. If the patient is over 40 years old, however, her doctor may recommend transferring two embryos.
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) also states that “studies demonstrate eSet achieves high rates of pregnancy, while simultaneously contributing to a drastic reduction in a multifetal pregnancy.”
The Society of Assisted Reproductive Technology (SART) and the American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) issued a joint document recommending the number of embryos to transfer, which heavily supports eSET in most cases.
Helping Your Embryo Implant
If you and your doctor feel eSet is your best course of action, you may want to explore using genetic testing like Pre-implantation Genetic Testing for Aneuploidy (PGT-A). Chromosomally normal embryos not only have a chance of implantation but it reduce the chance of miscarriage.
Between eSET and PGT-A, you may be making an incredibly powerful investment not just in your fertility treatment but in the future health of your pregnancy and baby.
Affording Fertility Treatment
According to the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL), in vitro fertilization (IVF) can cost on average $12,000 to $17,000. This does NOT include medication. Depending on the protocol your reproductive endocrinologist recommends, Fertility medications can range from $3,000 - $5,000
In addition, JAMA found it can take six to nine IVF cycles before achieving a live birth, which means you may be looking at more than one cycle.
Genetic testing like PGT-A is not covered by insurance and would be an additional $3,000-$5,000.
One of the first things to do is find out whether or not your insurance covers IVF. If it does, that will help tremendously.
If not, and you want to look into financing options, that’s where we can help!
Fertility treatment itself can be overwhelming. When trying to figure out how to afford IVF, it can add an extra layer of stress. This is what motivated our founder, Carmela Rea, to create EggFund. We can help you finance your treatment and at least remove that concern from your mind so you can focus on building your family. Click here to learn more.