Egg Collection and Embryo Transfer

This week we’re talking about egg collection and embryo transfer with former podcast guest Alpesh Doshi. 

We discuss how it all works and how the hormones are used to stimulate the ovary to produce follicles. 

Do numbers matter? 

We discuss the importance of managing your expectation in terms of what it all means, what size means, what % of follicles will result in an egg, and what stage an egg can be at. 

Alpesh explains how patients need to be informed at every stage of scans with how many follicles are in each ovary, what size are they, how many are they expected to grow, at the last scan, when they are ready for trigger - the patient should have more details chat about what to expect. 

Did you know 80% of follicles result in eggs? Typically follicles that are over 14mm in diameter 

What if I don’t get enough eggs? 

There is often a lot of disappointment that can come because patients aren’t sure how to interpret numbers. But it’s important to remember that 15 follicles don’t mean 15 eggs. Alpesh explains how important it is that patients shouldn’t fixate on a number = it could be a number of eggs and the number of embryos. The journey from the egg to the embryo is a funnel as the numbers come down. More important to focus on the embryo number.

How long does egg collection take and does it hurt? 

It can take 15 minutes to 45 minutes depending on the number of follicles. 

The procedure takes place under a general anesthetic, meaning you will have been nil by mouth since the night before. Alpesh explains the procedure of draining the follicles and how once it is done, and you have one round from the anesthetic you will be monitored to make sure everything is OK before you can go home. All in all about 2 hours. 

When will you hear from the clinic after egg collection? 

The embryologist has a conversation straight after once you are awake to explain what will happen next eg. IVF or ICSI 

There will then be a call the next day to update

Day 3 call - assessment 

Day 5 - to let you know how many have developed into Blastocyst 

Have a listen to a previous episode with Embryologist Rachel Cutting about ‘What an embryologist does’ 

What to do on the day of embryo transfer? 

If you have no complicated history of ET - no sedation will be needed, it’s like a smear test. You will need a full bladder, and a catheter will be passed into the cervix, using ultrasound and the embryologist will pass another catheter to release the embryo in the middle of the uterus. 

It takes about 20 minutes. You will be at the clinic for about 30 mins and then can go home. Hormones continued and then dealing with the two-week wait and talking to the clinic as much as you like. 

How to deal with the Two Week Wait #TWW

Natalie talked about how important it is to give yourself things to look forward to, and how she and her husband went away for a few days, so they’d done something nice even if the outcome wasn’t what they’d wanted. Alpesh talks about the importance of the emotions between couples being supported and managed. 

We will be making an episode about how you cope with the TWW, so if you’ve read this far and would like to tell us please email

The outcome - what if it’s not successful? 

What to expect from your clinic. Alpesh talks about how they manage a... 

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