One in seven heterosexual couples is affected by infertility disorders. Among them, one in ten is ready to get help to carry out their parenting project. More than 50,000 couples and potentially 2,000 single women or lesbian couples are likely to have recourse to medically assisted procreation (MAP), locally or abroad.

For each of these men and women, an immutable and crucial question arises: where to go in order to benefit from the best ART treatments and to obtain the greatest chances of successfully conceiving a child? Together, let’s sift through the essential criteria to know how to choose an infertility clinic, without leaving any room to chance. You can click here to know more.

Choosing your infertility clinic: certifications and approvals

Choosing the right infertility clinic means first of all ensuring that it has the approvals, certifications and accreditations issued by the competent authorities: Ministry of Health, national medical agency, joint bodies, etc.

In the United States, infertility clinics must meet ASRM (American Society for Reproductive Medicine) guidelines, be a member of SART (Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology), and report their results to the CDC ( Centers for Disease Control and Prevention).

In the European Union, regulations on medically procreation vary significantly from one member country to another. In Spain, it is the Spanish Fertility Society (SEF) and the Ministry of Health, Social Services and Equality that guarantee the reliability of the services and data provided by the infertility centers.

The Institute of Infertility benefits from numerous accreditations guaranteeing the high level of quality of all the medical, administrative and maintenance procedures of its assisted reproduction centers. These include:

• Certification as indicated by the universal standard ISO 9001
• Certification according to the Spanish standard UNE 179007 (for assisted reproduction laboratories)
• ESHRE certification (European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology)
• The accreditation of the SEF (Spanish fertility society)

Choosing your infertility clinic: research and innovation

Research and innovation are criteria that can tip the scales significantly when choosing your infertility clinic. At IVI, scientific innovation, technological progress, educational commitment and clinical expertise contribute to the excellence of the care provided to patients. In figures, IVI is:

• Research centers
• Researchers (clinicians, embryologists, geneticists, biochemists, etc.)
• Studies in progress
• Areas of investigation (female and male fertility, preimplantation genetics, epigenetics, cryobiology, aging and rejuvenation, stem cells, immunology, surgery, psychology, etc.);

Success rates, key elements in choosing an infertility clinic

The results displayed by infertility clinics are an essential indicator. These figures reflect the age of the patients, their pathology, but above all the quality of the reproduction center.

Since 1990s, nearly 5,000 couples from 80 countries come each year for consultation at the Institute of Infertility. Among them, nine out of ten couples achieve their goal to become a parent. In fact, over the past years, IVI centers have contributed to the birth of 160,000 children. In IVI, this success translates into pregnancy rates per patient of around 71.3% for IVF-ICSI with the patient’s oocytes and 79.6% for IVF with donated oocytes. After three attempts, these rates exceed 95.2% for IVF-ICSI with the patient’s oocytes and 99.2% for IVF with donated oocytes.

Paul watson