As the old adage goes “more isn’t always better.” Interestingly, this idea also applies to IVF. Often times, couples undergoing IVF will opt to have more, rather than less, embryos implanted in hopes of having a better chance at success.
A recent study published in The Lancet has found that more embryos doesn’t necessarily correlate with higher success rates.
The study looked at total live birth rates in two groups of women: those under the age of 40 and those over the age of 40.
In the younger group, women who transferred 2 embryos had a 33% success rate overall compared to a 25% success rate when 3 embryos were included.
In the older group, success rates averaged 13% whether they had 2 or 3 embryos transferred.
These findings suggest that there is no benefit to transplanting 3 embryos instead of 2. The study did not look at success rates for other numbers of transplanted embryos.
This study could impact legislation in a number of countries, especially those with government-funded health insurance.
For example, some countries already limit the number of embryos that can be transferred in a single IVF cycle.