ASSISTED CONCEPTION UNIT

Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) is a service to couples unable to achieve pregnancy naturally or by means of conventional treatment for infertility.

Opened officially by H.E. the Minister of Public Health on 6 April 1993, the Assisted Conception Unit started enrolling patients earlier in March 1993. Types of patients who were enrolled were those diagnosed as having tubal diseases, endometriosis, sperm antibodies and unexplained infertility. Also enrolled were couples where the male factors predominated. Patients under the age of 40 were preferred for treatment.

An Australian consultancy firm provided start-up laboratory assistance between April and September 1993, after which the ACU was given it’s own Laboratory Director and Embryologist. A medical team consisting of a consultant and four resident physicians evaluates the patients.

The first IVF case was done on April 15, 1993. The 152 treatment cycles attempted in 1993 resulted in 14 clinical pregnancies. It was unfortunate that not all pregnancies came to term. However, treatment for infertility resulted in the birth of some triplets, so that out of six deliveries, nine babies were taken home by the proud parents.

A new technique for transferring the embryo called Trans vaginal Trans myometrial Embryo Transfer joined the conventional techniques used in the Unit. In May 1994, a modern method of fertilization using the micro injection technique was employed following the installation of the required equipment. In July 1994, a urosurgeon introduced the Epididymal sperm retrieval technique and wrote a protocol for the procedure. Fertilization was achieved using micro injection technique in one case in 1994 but pregnancy did not result.

In March 1996, the Management decided to extend ACT treatment to expatriate couples in the country, resulting in a substantial increase in the number of conceptions, pregnancies and deliveries.

Table: Statistical summary 1993-1995

Procedure	1993	1994	1995
Treatment cycle	152	242	464
Clinical pregnancies achieved	14	66	95
Deliveries	6	37	65
Babies taken home (Number)	9	44	96

By employing conventional IVF procedures, the ACU achieved a 9% pregnancy rate per treatment cycle in 1993. This improved to 18.46% in 1994 and 18.98% in 1995. The Micro manipulation technique in transferring embryos achieved an even higher 30.89% success rate in 1995 while the gamete intra fallopian transfer method has achieved a 28.12% success rate.

The ACU attended to 584 new patients, 10,912 follow-up visits, 2,118 referrals and ordered 5,442 ultrasound scans from 1993 to 1995. The total non-surgical and surgical procedures performed in the Unit was 1,824 during the same period.

RESEARCH AT THE IVF LAB

HMC IVF Statistics in comparison to World figures

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