IUI vs. IVF

alexiskiriluk

Was the IUI worth it or a waste of money?

HarryPotterandCats

My insurance requires us to go through 2 IUIs but if those fail they cover up to 6 rounds of IVF. So even if IUIs are a waste, we dont have a choice.

Editing because words are hard

Wicked4589

We didn't do IUIs because there was no point. Depends on what your issues are. I have bum tubes and had three ectopic pregnancies. So an IUI would have been pointless.

calfherder

IUI was useless for us as well. But our insurance required we try it before IVF so not entirely a waste.

rachlee2010

I think that is hard question to answer because there are so many variables to consider..what are your issues and your finances being the biggest two. If your tubes are blocked than IUI is stupid but if things are generally working and your issues don't affect that IUI might be worth it..It is a very case by case thing

PCOSat25

Our insurance only covers IUIs not IVF. So hopefully IUIs are successful for us otherwise we are going to have A LOT out of pocket...

amos1417

It is a tough question to answer, however, if after 3 failed IUIs I would move onto IVF. All of my tests and labs looked great - I'm 35 but my AMH is 5.15 (Not diagnosed with PCOS); low testosterone, FSH is where it should be, I responded to femara, I always have plenty of follicles, etc. DH's SA is great. Looks good, right? Well, after my first egg retrieval, they harvested 24 eggs, 15 fertilized, only 4 made it to day 5 and only 3 made it to freeze. And, on top of that, their quality is only fair-poor. IVF is the only way to actually test and analyze egg quality.

IVF is not covered my insurance, but I will definitely make it happen again in 2016 if this FET fails next month.

GeauxTigers77

I can't answer because my insurance covers neither.  And I've had success with IUI.  But that was several years ago.  Now I'm not having success - yet.  I'm in the midst of 2nd IUI this time around.  There seems to be so many different circumstances from financial to DX's and age really that have to be considered. 

suchaglencoco

As PPs stated, there are a lot of variables to consider. IUIs have helped a lot of women conceive.
We had the option to skip IUI and go straight to ivf and we chose to do two IUI attempts. Both failed but I'm glad we did them. The ivf process is so long, daunting, expensive and hard on the body that if IUI is a viable option, I would always suggest that first to anyone I know.

KLake42

Insurance doesn't cover either for me.

I'm on my 7th IUI.  If unsuccessful, I move on to IVF.  But for me, these IUIs are still worth the try, even if I don't succeed.  I'm gay, and never tried to get pregnant before.  It would have been kind of bizarre for me to jump straight to IVF without even trying some lower tech inseminations first.  Besides, IUIs are way cheaper, even if they have a significantly lower success rate.

They also taught me that I do have a problem, though I had a hint when my blood work showed low reserve.  And they gave us some experience with stimulation drugs (bravelle, menopur, gonal-f) and ultrasound monitoring, which will help my doctor decide how to stimulate me in IVF.  With the dose of meds I had, some women end up with 5 or 6 follicles, and I only had 1-3.  So we'll probably blast my ovaries pretty hard for IVF.

And this experience has taught me to moderate my expectations with IVF.  I'm not going to get a ton of embryos.  I'll be lucky to get one or two.  I'm also ready to just give it a try once, and if doesn't work, then move on to partner IVF using my wife's eggs.

So bottom line-- it's been a necessary and educational experience to have the IUIs, even if this last one doesn't get me pregnant (I test on Sunday).  I won't regret them.

HBamama2B

I'm in the minority. I don't like IUIs for most candidates. As pp said-Dx/age are critical factors but in my very personal, and in no way judging others decisions, opinion:

The success rates are very low (just read the IUI vs the IVF boards, I can't read the IUI cycles without crying for the ladies' heartaches) compared to IVF, and the re control over outcome is greatly diminished. There's actually a higher risk of high order multiples with IUI too, especially when they do it with injectibles. ivf is more expensive, but has come so far as an ART and is regulated and has required reporting whereas IUI is still much more of a crapshoot that REs aren't required to report on. Reading the two boards really helped me decide that I was ok with IVF. I'm sorry we bothered with IUI, it was never going to work for us.