Trying to get pregnant and not having any luck with it is a matter that requires serious thinking. Usually, people try to seek out any viable possibility to have their own child, and that includes various hormonal therapies. But before you embark into something that can have so individual results you need to know what the success rate is for any of these products. One of these is “Gonal-F”. What is it, how does it work, and what is Gonal-F success rate?
What is Gonal-F and How Does It Work?
Gonal-F is a infertility treatment product from the gonatropin hormonal family. When you take fertility drugs like “clomiphene”, your body might not respond to it. That is when a gonatropin comes in and its function is to help you ovulate. Gonatropin can also be prescribed if you do not produce enough hormones (called FSH and LH) that are needed for ovulation. Gonatropin is also used when you’re under the procedure such as intrauterine insemination or in vitro fertilization. In those situations Gonadotropin helps you produce several eggs for such a procedure.
It is also interesting to note that Gonatropin is used with men who have a low sperm count or poor sperm quality.
Usually, if you are worried how your body will respond to such a treatment, this can be very emotionally unsettling. Gonadotropin treatment also means that you have to visit your doctor quite frequently. The whole procedure includes a number of detailed steps with a final one that times the conception, usually 12 to 36 hours after the so called trigger shot.
With most women it takes going through three to six such cycles. As far as the success rate goes, they do not necessarily improve with longer intake of the drug. If you do not have the luck to get pregnant after a few cycles the doctor may decide to either increase the dosage, or even change the treatment.
Possible risks
Like with any such treatment, there are risks involved. With Gonadotropin, the risks are as follows:
- Even if you are under close monitoring of your doctors, the most common complication is conceiving multiple babies, unless, of course, that is something your are going for.
- Some women under this type of treatment can develop the so called OHSS syndrome. OHSS syndrome means that a woman can produce too many eggs due to taking Gonadotropin.
- Some women could have mood swings, and among the possible physical changes your breasts could become more tender, your abdomen can get bloated and there could be rash or swelling at the spot where you received the injection.
- One thing that should probably not worry you with Gonadotropin treatment is that recent studies show that it does not increase the risk of ovarian cancer.
The success rate and costs
Of course, the success rate is a fairly individual thing. It is good to note that various internet discussions sites cite quite a number of successes. Taking into account a more scientific data, using Gonatropin with timed intercourse produces a pregnancy rate of 15 % per such a cycle. The chances of conceiving twins if you do get pregnant rise to 30%. Delivery itself depends also on factors like age and quality of partner’s sperm.
If you live in the US, each cycle of Gonadotropin treatment can cost you anywhere between $1,000 and $5,000. This is excluding all other medical costs like office visits and other.
Conclusion
As you can see, there is a number of factors to take into consideration when contemplating Gonadotropin treatment, including more material factors like whether your insurance covers such a treatment at all.
But if you do go down that road, “Gonal F” is one of the treatments you, your family and your doctor should take into consideration