Frequently asked questions
COVID-19 FAQs
- What is our current testing regime and requirements?
- How has COVID-19 affected NHS funding for fertility investigations or IVF?
- If I am required to take a Covid-19 test, how do I get a test?
- What happens if I test positive or develop symptoms of COVID-19?
- Should I delay my fertility treatment until after I have had the COVID-19 vaccine?
- Can I have a COVID-19 vaccine during my fertility treatment?
- I am donating my eggs/sperm for the use of others. Can I still have a COVID-19 vaccine?
- I’ve just found out I’m pregnant. Should I have a COVID-19 vaccine?
- How soon after having a COVID-19 vaccine can I start my fertility treatment?
General FAQs
- Are there any fertility supplements I can take to improve my chances of conceiving?
- How long will it take for my test kit to be delivered?
- How do I use my test kit?
- What happens after I have returned my test?
- What if my sample can’t be analysed?
- How long will it take for my test kit to be delivered?
- How do I use my test kit?
- How do I return my test sample?
- What happens after I have returned my test?
- What if my sample can’t be analysed?
- What support do you offer patients?
- How can I contact Bourn Hall?
- Can I have IVF at all clinics?
- Where are your clinics based?
- How do I access my Bourn Hall Patient Portal?
- How do I access my Fertility Consent (e-consents) system?
- I am donor-conceived, what information can I request about my donor and any donor-conceived siblings, and how do I apply for information?
Fertility help for women
- How are my eggs?
- Are my fallopian tubes working?
- Is my uterus healthy?
- When should I seek advice for a suspected fertility problem?
- What causes infertility in women?
- How do fertility drugs work?
- When is extended culture to blastocyst recommended?
- Can my partner stay with me during egg collection?
- What is IVF?
- Is there an age limit for IVF?
- How do I start IVF?
- What happens if I need to use donated sperm?
- How many embryos will you thaw if I am having a standard frozen-embryo transfer?
- Where do I start with fertility treatment?
- Is there a waiting list for treatment?
- Can I have my egg and/or embryos frozen, and how much does it cost?
- What options are there for paying for my treatment?
- How much does IVF or fertility treatment cost?
- What tests and treatments are there for female infertility?
- I am having frozen embryo transfer – will I be using Buserelin?
- Do I need to tell you when I have started my bleed?
- How soon after taking Buserelin will I start to bleed?
- Do I administer the injections at the same time everyday?
- Are there any side-effects associated with Buserelin?
- What’s the difference between Suprecur and Buserelin?
- How do I use Buserelin?
- How many embryos do I need to thaw if I am having them cultured to blastocyst?
- Why were my spare embryos/blastocysts not suitable to freeze?
- Can IVF success rates be improved with blastocyst transfers?
- How many of my embryos will form blastocysts if I have extended culture?
- How is an embryo chosen for IVF (embryo grading)?
- Embryos are graded once they have divided. Do you grade fertilised eggs?
- How many of my eggs should I expect to fertilise?
- Why weren’t all of my eggs used for ICSI?
- When might I need to have ICSI?
- Can I have sexual intercourse during treatment?
- Is it safe to have a COVID-19 vaccine or booster?
- Is it safe to have a flu vaccination?
- Is it normal to bleed during down-regulation?
- How long will the down-regulation last?
- Does my BMI and weight affect IVF?
- If my IVF treatment is unsuccessful, how long do I have to wait until I can try again?
- How long does IVF take?
- What happens if my IVF treatment is not successful?
- How many IVF cycles will I need?
- Is IVF right for me?
- How does IVF work?
- I’ve tried making lifestyle changes, and I still can’t get pregnant. Is there something wrong with me?
- As a female, how can I increase my fertility?
- How does my monthly cycle work?
- What if I need surgery?
Fertility help for men
- How’s my sperm doing?
- I have previously had a vasectomy, what options do I have?
- Can I have a consultation with an andrologist?
- How much is a semen assessment?
- What tests and treatments are there for male infertility?
- What happens when I give a sperm sample?
- Is there a waiting list for donation?
- Can I donate my sperm?
- Where will my frozen sperm be stored?
- Can I have my sperm frozen and how much does it cost?
- I’ve tried making lifestyle changes, and my partner still can’t get pregnant. Am I infertile?
- As a male, how can I increase my fertility?
- I’ve got no sperm in my ejaculate. Can anything be done?
- What can blood tests show about male infertility?
- The veins around my testicles are all swollen. Will it affect my fertility?
- There’s a history of cystic fibrosis in my family. Would that affect our ability to conceive?
- I’m a keen cyclist, but have been told that a hard bicycle seat and Lycra cycling shorts are not good for my fertility. Is this true?
- How do I know if I’m suffering from male infertility?
- What causes male infertility?
- What treatments are there for male infertility?
- I have got a low sperm count. Is there anything I can do?
Fertility help for heterosexual couples
- Is there an age limit for IVF?
- How do we start IVF?
- Where do we start with fertility treatment?
- We already have a child, but I am having problems getting pregnant again. Is there something wrong with me?
- Can we have treatment on the NHS?
- What options are there for paying for my treatment?
- Is there a waiting list for treatment?
- How much does fertility treatment cost?
- What treatments are there for infertility?
- What happens if we need to use donated sperm?
- How many embryos do we need to thaw if we are having them cultured to blastocyst?
- How many embryos will you thaw if we are having a standard frozen embryo transfer?
- Why were our spare embryos/blastocysts not suitable to freeze?
- Can IVF success rates be improved with blastocysts transfers?
- How many of our embryos will form blastocysts if we have extended culture?
- When is extended culture to blastocyst recommended?
- When might we need to have ICSI?
- What support is available to us during treatment and whilst we are trying for a family?
- Can my partner stay with me during egg collection?
- Can we have sexual intercourse during treatment?
- If our treatment is not successful, how long do I have to wait until I can try again?
- How long does IVF last?
- What happens if our treatment is not successful?
- Is IVF right for us?
- How does IVF work for a heterosexual couple?
- What is IVF?
- Can changing our lifestyle help?
- We’ve tried making lifestyle changes, and we still can’t get pregnant. Is one of us infertile?
- How can we increase our fertility?
Fertility help for same-sex couples
- Can we have more than one child with the same egg donor?
- What rights does the egg donor have to the child?
- Can we use an egg from a known donor?
- What kind of support will we receive?
- How do we find an egg donor?
- How much does egg freezing cost?
- Where will our eggs be stored?
- Can we freeze my eggs?
- What is shared motherhood?
- Why choose shared motherhood?
- What support is available during treatment?
- Where will our sperm be stored?
- How much does sperm freezing cost?
- Can we freeze our sperm?
- Does the surrogate have rights to the child?
- How does surrogacy work?
- How do we find a surrogate?
- Can we have more than one child with the same egg donor?
- Who can benefit from shared motherhood?
- How do we find an egg donor?
- What is the cost of male same-sex fertility treatment?
- What treatments are available to male same-sex couples?
- Can we use an egg from a known donor?
- What is the process for shared motherhood?
- Is shared motherhood safe?
- Is shared motherhood available through finance?
- Will both partners be legally recognised as parents?
- How long does the shared motherhood process take?
- What support is available during treatment?
- Can we have more than one child with the same sperm donor?
- Can we use a known sperm donor?
- Does the donor have any rights to the child?
- What can we find out about the sperm donor?
- What is the cost of female same-sex fertility treatment?
- What treatments are available to female same-sex couples?
