Assisted Hatching

At The Center For Reproductive Health, assisted hatching may be recommended for women who have failed IVF or for women over 35. During the initial stages of development, an embryo is contained in a layer of proteins known as the zona pellucida. To successfully implant into the uterine lining, the embryo must hatch out of the zona pellucida and attach to the walls of the uterus.

Assisted hatching is a lab technique that was developed when it was observed that embryos that had a thin zona pellucida had a higher rate of implantation during In Vitro Fertilization (IVF). Embryologists create a small hole in the outer lining using micromanipulation techniques under a microscope during the fourth day of embryo development.

Assisted hatching helps with IVF success in couples in which the women are over 35 or couples who have had multiple failed IVF cycles. It is thought that some women may fail multiple cycles of IVF because their eggs have a thicker shell, and assisted hatching can help with this problem.

CRH does not use assisted hatching with every patient. Assisted hatching may be indicated for patients with a poor prognosis, such as older patients or those with two or more failed IVF cycles and poor embryo quality. In those patients, there have been higher clinical pregnancy rates and implantation rates after assisted hatching.

There is some risk of monozygotic twins with this process.