Immunology: Mock embryo transfer with a full bladder immediately before the real transfer for in-vitro fertilization treatment: the Birmingham experience of 113 cases

The technique of embryo transfer can have a great impact onthe outcome of in-vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment. Transcervicalembryo transfer is a blind procedure and difficulty can unexpectedlyarise. Many IVF programmes therefore perform a ‘mock’embryo transfer prior to the treatment cycle to determine themost suitable catheter and technique for transfer. This, however,adds an extra separate procedure with time and cost implications.Moreover, as the uterus is mobile, its direction may vary onthe day of the embryo transfer from what it was during the mockembryo transfer. Performing mock embryo transfer immediatelybefore the real transfer would circumvent these problems. Wereport here on 113 embryo transfer procedures where a ‘step-wise’mock embryo transfer protocol was performed with a full bladderimmediately before the embryo transfer. The number of embryostransferred (mean ± SD) was 2.6 ± 0.67, the pregnancyrate per embryo transfer was 45.1%, and the intrauterine implantationrate per embryo transferred was 20.6%.