India’s largest chain of fertility centers sets up its newest facility in Punjab to offer couples the best treatment using the latest technology. 14 March 2014 Infertility is on the rise in India due to numerous reasons including genetic disorders, stress, urbanization, late settlement in life as well as the rising incidence of an unhealthy lifestyle. A recent study estimates approximately 15%-20% of married couples in their fertile age group suffer from infertility. It is an increasingly prevalent health concern and treatments are widely being sought to overcome infertility related disorders. However, there is a widespread shortage of standardized clinical protocols, structured training, quality laboratories, qualified embryologists and ethical practices.

Filling in this gap and bringing to fore a trusted and a credible partner offering standardized and ethical infertility treatment to couples with the latest techniques, Nova IVF Fertility launched its 7th center in India in the city of Jalandhar today. Part of Nova Medical Centers, the Nova IVF Fertility center in Jalandhar was inaugurated by R L Bassan, Civil Surgeon- Jalandhar and Gurpreet Ghuggi, celebrated Punjabi actor and comedian, in the presence of Suresh Soni, Chairman & CEO, Nova Medical Centers, V.P. Kamath, Group COO, Nova Medical Centers and Dr. Jasmine Kaur, Clinical Director, Nova IVF Fertility – Jalandhar.

Speaking at the launch, Suresh Soni, Chairman and CEO, Nova Medical Centers, said: "We are extremely happy to announce the opening of our center in Jalandhar, which will also act as a focal point catering to nearby areas in the state of Punjab. This center brings together renowned specialists with state-of-the-art technology and extensive services all under one roof. The new facility in Jalandhar is a step ahead in realising Nova’s commitment towards offering standardized and ethical infertility treatment, as well as addressing the urgent need for an organized institutional provider for fertility treatment. With six well-established fertility centers in major cities and the seventh one in Jalandhar, Nova IVF Fertility plans to launch as many as 10 centers in a year’s time with the goal of bringing high quality assisted reproductive therapy to the people of India."

In addition to providing core procedures such as IUI, IVF, and Andrology services, Nova IVF Fertility – Jalandhar will offer several state-of-the-art technologies such as assisted hatching, blastocyst culture, and vitrification. This center will also offer another sought after advanced technique known as IMSI (intracytoplasmic morphologically-selected sperm injection). This is an upgrade of ICSI (intracytoplasmic sperm injection), where the embryologist carries out the fertilization of the oocytes (egg) using an extremely high-powered microscope to select the sperm cells with the best morphological quality.

Dr. Jasmine Kaur, Clinical Director, Nova IVF Fertility, Jalandharadded, “In my career, I have come across hundreds of couples wanting to have children but who have been unlucky. With my experience, I have learnt that with a little patience, compassion and the right technology, we can bring joy into the lives of our patients. Nova IVF Fertility center at Jalandhar is fully equipped with the latest technology available in the world and offers the most effective treatment to patients, while following international guidelines to ensure positive results"

Nova IVF stems from a partnership between Nova Medical Centers and IVF, Spain, to introduce the most sophisticated advanced Assisted Reproductive Technology in India. This partnership has resulted in substantial addition to Nova's IVF services and technology, including proprietary software, training and quality management. With IVF's know-how and vast international expertise, Nova brings the same exceptional standard of processes, protocols and policies that has helped thousands of births. More importantly, the Nova IVF ART Bank now provides oocyte freezing (vitrification) and Pre-implantation Genetic Diagnosis (PGD) in India. This successful partnership has helped establish a world-class research facility in India that has the most robust database for clinical research in the field of infertility treatments, making Nova IVF a market leader in ART and clinical outcomes.

Nova IVF Fertility is already present in Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Kolkata, Mumbai, New Delhi and Chennai.

About Nova Medical Centers
Nova Medical Centers is the parent company of Nova Specialty Hospitals and Nova IVF Fertility. It currently operates 11 specialty surgery centers and 7 fertility centers. Nova was co-founded by Suresh Soni, renowned shoulder surgeon Dr. Mahesh Reddy and the GTI Group, based on a “doctor-owned and doctor-managed” concept enabling doctors to have a sense of ownership and a long-term association with the company. This concept also allows doctors to deliver the best possible patient care in an open and free environment.

Established in 2009, Nova Specialty Hospitals’ mission is to provide world-class surgical care that is accessible and at an affordable cost. Having pioneered the concept of short-stay surgical care in India, Nova focuses on providing the finest quality care for patients from specialized doctors while increasing operating efficiency.

Nova IVF Fertility is a joint venture between Nova Pulse, India, and IVF, Spain, introducing the same exceptional standard of processes, protocols and policies to deliver the most sophisticated Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) in India.

Nova’s vision is to create a novel institution that stands for excellence in healthcare services by providing the best patient experience and is an international reference for clinical outcomes, by adopting the latest advances in medical sciences, technology and an innovative business model.

Nova IVF Fertility highlights the reasons for RIF and measures which can prevent it

4 – 17% of Indian couples are diagnosed as infertile. Infertility is a condition characterised by the failure to establish a clinical pregnancy after 12 months of regular, unprotected sexual intercourse. However, only 1% of the affected couples have opted for IVF (in-vitro fertilization) or other treatments that can help conceive. The uptake of Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) for conceiving is on the rise. In fact, 40 years since the world’s first IVF baby was born, over 8 million IVF babies have been born worldwide.

IVF is the most commonly used ART technique. In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) is a technique where a woman’s eggs and man’s sperm are combined to create an embryo(s). Depending on the diagnosis and age of the woman, an embryo or embryos are transferred to the woman’s uterus through her cervix to enhance the chances of pregnancy. However, there are instances when IVF cycles could repeatedly fail.

Repeated IVF Failure (RIF) refers to cases in which women had three failed in vitro fertilization (IVF) attempts with good quality embryos. There are multiple risk factors for recurrent IVF failure including advanced maternal age, smoking status of parents, elevated body mass index, and stress levels.

Discussing the reasons and implications of RIF at a press meet held today, Dr Chandana Lakkireddi, Fertility Consultant, Nova IVF Fertility, Hyderabad commented, “Implantation dysfunction is a common cause of repeated “unexplained” IVF failure with good embryos. This is especially the case in young ovulating women who have normal ovarian reserve and have fertile partners. Successful embryo implantation depends on a well-functioning endometrium as well as a normal healthy embryo. For IVF procedures, it is critical to ensure the adequacy of the embryo and endometrium individually. This process might be hampered if either of these variables is defective”.

Reasons for Repeated IVF Failure:

With an average success rate of 50%, there are several couples who experience failed IVF treatment. The most common causes of RIF are generally classified as maternal and/or embryological factors. Some of the most common reasons for IVF failure are:

Implantation Failure:

Implantation failure is commonly caused due to uterine health. If the endometrium (lining of the uterus) is not thick enough for the embryo to be attached or if it does not provide the necessary nutrients for the embryo to develop in the first few days, the embryo fails to implant to the uterine wall. A weak endometrium is often a result of conditions like fibroids, endometrial polyps, congenital anomalies, intrauterine adhesions, hydrosalpinges. Most health care professionals are looking for a uterine lining to be greater than 8mm when a patient is having fertility treatment, however optimal would be considered 11-12 millimetres

Age related:

Maternal age is the most important variable in predicting implantation. The ovarian reserve of a woman tends to decline sharply after her mid-30s. Advanced maternal age is not only associated with increase in embryo anueploidy but also there is a parallel decline in ovarian reserve and response to gonadotropin stimulation.

Embryo Quality

The health of the embryo depends on the quality of the gametes; i.e the oocyte and sperm quality, in cases with advanced maternal age the oocyte quality can be compromised affecting implantation and success of IVF. If the quality of the Embryo is compromised due to alterations in the number of chromosomes or if the shell surrounding the embryo is thin, of in instances where the cells that are developing in the embryo itself are irregular or when there is a significant degree of cell debris around the embryo (known as fragmentation) it is thought that implantation could be compromised

DNA fragmentation:

Sperm DNA integrity is vital for successful fertilization, embryo development, pregnancy, and transmission of genetic material to the offspring. DNA fragmentation is the most frequent DNA anomaly present in the male gamete that has been associated to poor semen quality, low fertilization rates, impaired embryo quality, and pre-implantation development and reduced clinical outcomes in assisted reproduction procedures.

Advanced technologies that improve success rate of IVF

BLASTOCYST CULTURE

Blastocyst Culture is a technique in which an embryo is developed in the laboratory for 5-6 days after fertilization before being placed in womb. The embryo gains many cells as a result of being developed for so many days. The embryos developed for 5-6 days are much more advanced than the ones developed for just three days. This enables embryologists to select from the more advanced embryos with better potential for implantation. The biggest advantage of Blastocyst Culture method is that it significantly reduces the risk of multiple pregnancies.

“Over the years, Advanced Reproductive Techniques have witnessed some major developments giving rise to the trend of personalized medical attention. Advanced Reproductive Techniques such as Blastocyst, PGD & PGS, ERA and Magnetic Activated Cell Sorting help in solving abnormalities due to genetic issues in the fertile couples.” added Dr Chandana Lakkireddi.

About Nova IVF Fertility

Nova IVF Fertility (NIF) is the among the largest service providers in the fertility space. NIF aims to bring advanced Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) to India in partnership with IVF of Spain. The partnership has resulted in a substantial addition to Nova's IVF services and technology, including proprietary software, training, and quality management. With IVF's know-how and vast international expertise, NIF brings the same exceptional standard of processes, protocols, and policies to India.

In addition to providing core procedures such as IUI, IVF, and Andrology services, NIF offers several state-of-the-art technologies such as Vitrification for preserving embryos and eggs, ERA to find out the timing of the uterus' capacity to accept embryos, PGS and PGD for the transfer of genetically normal embryos – all procedures that significantly improve the chances of a pregnancy following IVF-ICSI, even in patients with multiple previous failures. NIF currently operates 20 fertility centres in India (Ahmedabad (2), Bengaluru (3), Chennai, Coimbatore, Hisar, Hyderabad, Indore, Jalandhar, Kolkata, Lucknow, Mumbai (2), New Delhi (2), Pune, Surat, and Vijayawada).

For further information, visit www.novaivifertility.com

Media contacts:

Debolina

Manager – PR, Nova IVF Fertility

Phone: +91 76194 62888

Email: debolina.mukherjee@novaivifertility.net

Technologies like Blastocyst culture, PGD & PGS have significantly helped reduce the number of repeated IVF failures in Surat

Infertility is the inability to conceive despite engaging in unprotected sexual intercourse. Infertility has become a growing concern in India with about 4 – 17% of Indian couples diagnosed as infertile. An unsuccessful IVF cycle can be emotionally and financially devastating. About a third of the time, infertility failed can be traced to the woman. In another third of cases, it is because of the man. The rest of the time, it is because of both partners. However, only 1% of the affected couples have opted for IVF (in-vitro fertilization) or other treatments that help conceive.

In vitro fertilization (IVF) is a type of assistive reproductive technology (ART) which involves retrieving eggs from a woman’s ovaries and fertilizing them with sperms. The fertilized egg is known as an embryo, which is the frozen for storage or transferred to a woman’s uterus. However, given that the average success rate of IVF is 40-50%, there are instances where IVF cycles could fail repeatedly, termed as Repeated IVF Failure (RIF).

Repeated IVF Failure (RIF) is determined when embryos of good quality fail to implant following several in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment cycles. Implantation failure is related to either maternal factors or embryonic causes. Discussing the major causes for Repeated IVF Failure at a press meet held today, Dr. Mona Shroff, Fertility Consultant, Nova IVF Fertility, Surat commented, “Recurrent implantation failure is an important cause of repeated IVF failure. It is estimated that approximately 10% of women seeking IVF treatment will experience this particular problem. Various uterine pathologies, such as thin endometrium, altered expression of adhesive molecules and immunological factors, may decrease endometrial receptivity. On the other hand, genetic abnormalities of the male or female partner, sperm defects, embryonic aneuploidy or zona hardening are among the embryonic reasons that contribute to failure.”

Understanding the reasons for IVF failure

With an average success rate of 50%, 5 million babies are born worldwide through every cycle of IVF. This means that almost half the people have unsuccessful IVF and fail to conceive. Here are detailed reasons why IVF could fail:

Decreased Endometrial Receptivity:

If the endometrium (lining of the uterus) is not thick enough for the embryo to be attached or if it does not provide the necessary nutrients for the embryo to develop in the first few days, the embryo fails to implant to the uterine wall. A weak endometrium is often a result of conditions like fibroids, endometrial polyps, congenital anomalies, intrauterine adhesions, hydrosarpinx. The ideal measurement of an uterine lining should be greater than 8mm when a patient is having fertility treatment, however optimal would be considered 11-12 millimetres.

Embryo Quality

The health of the embryo depends on the quality of the gametes; i.e the oocyte and sperm quality, in cases with advanced maternal age the oocyte quality can be compromised affecting implantation and success of IVF. If the quality of the Embryo is compromised due to alterations in the number of chromosomes or if the shell surrounding the embryo is thin, of in instances where the cells that are developing in the embryo itself are irregular or when there is a significant degree of cell debris around the embryo (known as fragmentation) it is thought that implantation could be compromised.

Technologies used for better IVF success rate

The field of Assisted Reproductive Technology is rapidly progressing with many new advances since the last decade. The future of reproductive technology holds great potential to allow biological birth for those who might not otherwise have been capable of it.

PRE-GENETIC DIAGNOSIS & SCREENING

Genetics contribute up to 10 per cent of recurrent pregnancy losses in couples. Embryos with an incorrect number of chromosomes fail to implant or miscarriage during the first trimester of pregnancy. Reproductive genetics help in screening the embryos and select the healthy embryo for implantation. PGS is a last generation genetic test that allows screening for chromosomal abnormalities in embryos during an IVF cycle. All 24 types of chromosomes are analyzed using PGS in order to detect aneuploidies (alterations in the number of chromosomes) which are the leading cause of miscarriages and implantation failure.

Commenting on how ART technology has helped reduce repeated IVF failures, Dr Mona Shroff added, “Since the birth of the first IVF baby in the year 1978, the industry has seen tremendous advancements. Both technology and healthcare have always advanced simultaneously. Assisted Reproductive Techniques such as Blastocyst culture, Time-lapse screening, PGD & PGS have greatly increased the number of live births in each stimulated IVF cycle.”

BLASTOCYST CULTURE

Blastocyst Culture is a technique in which an embryo is developed in the laboratory for 4-6 days after fertilization before being placed in womb. The embryo gains many cells as a result of being developed for so many days. The embryos developed for 4-6 days are much more advanced than the ones developed for just three days. This enables embryologists to select from the more advanced embryos with better potential for implantation.

About Nova IVF Fertility

Nova IVF Fertility (NIF) is the among the largest service providers in the fertility space. NIF aims to bring advanced Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) to India in partnership with IVF of Spain. The partnership has resulted in a substantial addition to Nova's IVF services and technology, including proprietary software, training, and quality management. With IVF's know-how and vast international expertise, NIF brings the same exceptional standard of processes, protocols, and policies to India.

In addition to providing core procedures such as IUI, IVF, and Andrology services, NIF offers several state-of-the-art technologies such as Vitrification for preserving embryos and eggs, ERA to find out the timing of the uterus' capacity to accept embryos, PGS and PGD for the transfer of genetically normal embryos – all procedures that significantly improve the chances of a pregnancy following IVF-ICSI, even in patients with multiple previous failures. NIF currently operates 20 fertility centres in India (Ahmedabad (2), Bengaluru (3), Chennai, Coimbatore, Hisar, Hyderabad, Indore, Jalandhar, Kolkata, Lucknow, Mumbai (2), New Delhi (2), Pune, Surat, and Vijayawada).

For further information, visit www.novaivifertility.com

Media contacts:

Debolina

Manager – PR, Nova IVF Fertility

Phone: +91 76194 62888

Email: debolina.mukherjee@novaivifertility.net