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Success after IF
mrs.cam
member
![image](<a href="http://www.thebump.com/?utm_source=ticker&utm_medium=HTML&utm_campaign=tickers" title="Parenting Advice"><img src="http://global.thebump.com/tickers/tt1acca3.aspx" alt=" BabyFruit Ticker" border="0" /></a>)
PCOS success?
mrs.cam
member
I'm feeling a little down after a consult with my RE yesterday. Basically I have PCOS and have done 4 cycles of Clomid with no pregnancy. Yesterday the dr told us we probably wouldn't conceive naturally. We are going to move on to IUI which she doesn't seem to think will be effective and then on to IVF.
I was just wondering how long and what methods it took you to get PG, if you have PCOS.
Thanks!
This discussion has been closed.
Re: PCOS success?
Savannah
Callista
Baby Trail Blog
"Someday we will look at our babies and know it will be worth it. If it was easy, we would not have had our babies, the babies we were meant to have." From Amy052006
Have they tested to see if you are insulin resistant? I was started on Glucophage because insulin resistance is a component of my PCOS. We were going to to Clomid and I surprisingly ovulated on my own...
I know I'm in the minority here though... I was fully prepared to have to move on to IUI or IVF.
I have PCOS and it took me 7 rounds of Clomid + Meformin to get our BFP. We had just gone in for our IVF consult when we found out we were pregnant, so don't give up! We are in the VERY early stages (just found out on Tuesday) but we're hopeful. Good luck to you!
Thanks for the responses! I'm surprised to hear so many successes with IUI. My dr made it sound like I would produce "too many" follicules which would lead her to cancel the cycle and move on to IVF. Your stories make me hopeful.
And no, I'm not sure about the insulin resistance... I wasn't put on Met with clomid like I know some are. I guess I need to ask a few more questions next time!
Clomid/IUI#2 did the trick for us. All in all I was TTC for 7 months before I was pregnant. I suspected PCOS and started with an RE after 2 months TTC. Tried just metformin for 3 months and then did 2 medicated cycles. GL! I know how scary this diagnosis is.
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Forgot to mention that I was on metformin, too.
GL!
I have PCOS and just got my BFP today!
We have done 6 cycles with Clomid and the 6th one worked.
I've also taken Metformin the entire time.
My first question: are you on Met? If not......you really should be on it asap. Without the Met, a lot of women are not successful with Clomid alone.
That being said, I have PCOS.
I have been PG 4 times. The first time ended in an early m/c. The 2nd PG resulted in my DS.....who was conceived with injects, b2b IUI's and 1000mg of Met.
My third PG we conceived completely on our own (I wasn't even on Met....), but that PG ended in a m/c at 10.5 weeks.
This is my 4th PG and we conceived on our own with 1000mg of Met.
I would not write off IUI's......I know lots of women with PCOS who conceived with IUI. I would suggest trying IUI and injects!
GL!!
Three rounds of clomid with TI (and lots of cysts in between!) were all terrible. Then we moved to follistim with b2b IUIs. I got pregnant on my 2nd round. My SIL has PCOS also and she got pregnant with her 3rd IUI on clomid. I don't see why your doc doesn't think you can conceive with IUI...maybe she's scare of overstimulation? If my 2nd IUI hadn't worked, my doc wanted to move onto IVF because my ovaries were pretty sensitive and upping my dosages just a little led to an increase from 1 mature follie to about 5.
Good luck!
After a PCOS dx, 18 months of trying, 3 rounds of clomid and 2 follistim IUIs our babies are here!
what is your specific issue? I understand PCOS, but are you ovulating? Do you O late? Is it your follie growth or your estrogen level? Do you have cysts, etc
I know it feels like an eternity, but 4 cycles is not much with treatment like clomid...the average couple with no issues has only a 25% chance each cycle. btw, were you fully monitored?
That is often said to PCOSers, but it is really not entirely true. In fact, in my case, I only had a total of 10 eggs...
and I am about to overwhelm you.... I am about to list a gazillion tests one should have for PCOS, in order to determine what is wrong... A PCOSer who ovulates well but has high testosterone will respond differently than one who is IR, but has elevated prolactin and so on....
here is a pretty scary list of test:
PCOS is to some extent a diagnosis of exclusion. There is not a specific test that can be used to diagnose PCOS and there is not widespread agreement on what the diagnostic criteria should be. Your doctor will do tests to rule out other causes of anovulation and infertility. He will usually order a variety of hormone tests to help determine whether hormone overproduction may be due to PCOS, an adrenal or ovarian tumor, or an overgrowth in adrenal tissue (adrenal hyperplasia). Ultrasounds are often used to look for cysts in the ovaries and to see if the internal structures appear normal.Your doctor will be looking for a combination of laboratory results and clinical findings that suggest PCOS. If you are diagnosed with PCOS, your doctor may order tests such as lipid profiles and glucose levels to monitor your risk of developing future complications such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease
Laboratory Tests
Non-Laboratory Tests
Ultrasound, transvaginal and/or pelvic/abdominal are used to evaluate enlarged ovaries. With PCOS, the ovaries may be 1.5 to 3 times larger than normal and characteristically have more than 8 follicles per ovary, with each follicle less than 10 mm in diameter. Often the cysts are lined up on the surface the ovaries, forming the appearance of a "pearl necklace." These ultrasound findings are not diagnostic. They are present in more than 90% of women with PCOS, but they are also found in up to 25% of women without PCOS.
Laparoscopy may be used to evaluate ovaries, evaluate the endometrial lining of the uterus, and sometimes used as part of surgical treatment.
I have PCOS, and my DH had low counts. We were unsuccessful with 5 rounds of Clomid/TI. We got our BFP with Femara and IUI. I was also on Metformin.
If your physician hasn't tested you for insulin resistance and started you on Metformin, that needs to be done ASAP.
Also, and I'll just be honest here, I would run from a Dr. that wanted to go straight from clomid to IVF without a TON of testing and WAY more info. Sorry to be so blunt, but that's just how I feel about it.
Whatever happens, good luck!!
To be honest, I'm a bit surprised your RE would say this without trying injects first. Not everyone responds the same to injects. You didn't mention why the Clomid didn't work - did you not ovulate on it, or did you just not get a BFP?
It really is a process of trial and error - we were blessed enough to get pregnant on our first cycle out of the gate, but it was one hell of a cycle. Started out with Clomid at 150mg (I think that's right) and u/s showed no follie growth. Within that same cycle, we moved to Gonal-F injects with a low and slow approach (just feeding a small amount of medicine over a long period of time - I was on the Gonal-F for over 2 weeks). We had one good sized follie and one right behind and were set to trigger after a confirmation u/s the next day. At that confirmation u/s we found that overnight, another 6-8 mature follicles had popped up. So we had to cancel that cycle, but somehow I ovulated on my own from those meds and we are now pg with a singleton.
I would definitely ask if Metformin is an option for you, and personally I would be hesitant to move to IVF without first trying injectibles. There are a few different methods (low and slow like I did or there is another method, forget what it's called, but you start with a high dose to kick start the ovaries then taper down the dosage as the best one matures), so definitely give the injects a try before moving to IVF. Ultimately, yeah, if you go through a few cycles and overstim each time, then you may want to start considering IVF, but I'd at least give injects a shot first. They do work for lots of PCOSers.
I have PCOS, which after being diagnosed with a balanced translocation and the clotting disorders, now feels like my most minor issue.
After 4 failed rounds of clomid and 2 failed IVF's, this pg was on metformin only. (incidentally, my 2 m/c were also conceived on only metformin). This pg was about 6 mo after our second IVF cycle (and 2 ys 4mo after we started trying).
Good luck
I know I'm late responding but I did want to thank everyone for the extensive information. My PCOS diagnosis was based on enlarged polycystic ovaries and irregular cycles alone. I am going for a full PCOS panel in two weeks,then the HSG, and other various tests (fun fun!) after I get my next period. Which I will probably have to induce with Provera... grr. So I do have a lot of ironing out of details to do, your info was very helpful.
Thanks!