Selecting Healthy Embryos: PGT-A & In Vitro Fertilization
PFC offers preimplantation genetic testing for aneuploidy (PGT-A) as an option for patients undergoing IVF. PGT-A is one of the technologies that sets apart fertility programs such as Pacific Fertility Center, and we are pleased to offer this testing to our patients.
PGT-A helps:
- Improve IVF pregnancy rates per transfer
- Support elective Single Embryo Transfer (eSET), reducing the risk of multiple gestation
- Reduce the risk of miscarriage
- Reduce the risk of chromosomal abnormalities such as Down syndrome
Patients who can benefit from PGT-A include those who have:
- Experienced recurrent miscarriage for unknown reasons or due to prior aneuploidy
- Increased risk for chromosomal abnormalities due to maternal age
- Additional medical risks associated with the possibility of twin pregnancy
- Risk for sex-linked disease in offspring or other reasons for sex selection
- Plans to use a gestational carrier
If you choose to utilize PGT-A, you will be required to meet with our in-house Genetic Counselors before your treatment cycle.
How does PGT-A work?
In IVF, achieving high pregnancy rates with minimum risk requires high-quality embryos, however, identifying high-quality embryos in the IVF lab isn’t always a straightforward process. Even if an embryo appears viable under a microscope, it may not ultimately result in a successful pregnancy.
One of the most common causes of embryo implantation failure and pregnancy loss is aneuploidy, which is when an embryo has an abnormal number of chromosomes. Humans are born with 23 pairs of chromosomes for a total of 46, with one set each being inherited from both parents. PGT-A allows us to screen embryos for aneuploidy and select chromosomally normal embryos that are eligible for transfer.
Embryos are biopsied on days 5-7 of development (the blastocyst stage). A few cells from the trophectoderm (which would eventually become the placenta) are sent to a genetics lab for testing. While PGT-A can be an immensely helpful addition to an IVF treatment cycle, it alone does not increase the number of chromosomally normal embryos available for transfer.
The Science Behind PGT-A
An embryo that contains a normal number of chromosomes is a 'euploid' embryo. An embryo that carries an abnormal number of chromosomes is 'aneuploid'. Examples of aneuploid embryos include trisomy 18 and trisomy 21, otherwise known as Edward syndrome and Down Syndrome respectively. Embryos can also be affected by complex combinations of abnormal chromosomes, and even contain an extra entire set of chromosomes (triploidy).
Aneuploidy is quite common and, more often than not, PGT-A testing will show that an embryo is aneuploid. Half or more (sometimes all) embryos in a particular IVF treatment cycle are aneuploid, and while we can't prove this, we suspect that the majority of natural conceptions are affected by aneuploidy as well. The common clinical scenarios of age-related infertility, miscarriage, and Down syndrome are all expressions of aneuploidy.
In the early days of embryo development, most of these aneuploid embryos never grow and are never seen clinically. A few aneuploid embryos continue development and result in clinical problems. Miscarriage occurs in about a fourth of pregnancies – most of these are aneuploid. The rate of aneuploid embryos resulting in miscarriage increases dramatically with maternal age such that 50% or more of pregnancies after age 40 will miscarry. In milder forms of aneuploidy, embryos can survive longer, with some continuing into pregnancy, resulting in genetic conditions such as Down syndrome.
Age is the best predictor of aneuploidy and a major factor to consider when thinking about aneuploidy. In a woman under age 30, about half of embryos are aneuploid. At age 42, around 80% of embryos are aneuploid. On occasion, especially in older age groups, all embryos from a cycle are aneuploid.
PGT-A Pros and Cons
Pros of PGT-A include:
- Improved selection of embryos most likely to result in pregnancy and birth
- eduction in aneuploidy
- Reduction in miscarriage rate
- Improved implantation rate
- Reduced multiple (twin or more) pregnancy risk
- Identification of the sex of the embryo
Cons include:
- Rare errors in test results, assumed to be mostly due to mosaicism (mixture of euploid and aneuploid cells in an embryo) that is not detected
- Few randomized prospective trials
- Data on safety incomplete, but reassuring
- Data on delivered child outcomes is under continued study
Although there are few randomized trials on PGT-A and data on outcomes is limited, we have enough experience with pre-implantation genetic testing to feel confident that this is a safe and highly accurate procedure.