Preimplantation Genetic Screening

The aim is to increase the likelihood that a healthy embryo will implant to reduce the possibility of an early miscarriage. PGS would also be expected to reduce the incidence of fetal abnormality and birth defects related to chromosomal disorders.

Preimplantation genetic screening is a way of diagnosing whether an embryo is apparently normal or abnormal before transferring the embryo into your uterus. This is a complex test which involves embryo biopsy (removing a single cell from the embryos) and analyzing the chromosomes of the cell removed from the embryo using a staining technique called FISH. It is a state of the art laboratory technique carried out prior to embryo being transferred into the uterus.
. The aim is to increase the likelihood that a healthy embryo will implant to reduce the possibility of an early miscarriage. PGS would also be expected to reduce the incidence of fetal abnormality and birth defects related to chromosomal disorders

Preimplantation geneteic screening is performed for four reasons :

• Advanced maternal age (women over the age of 35 years)
  
• Previous unsuccessful IVF despite apparently good quality embryos
  
• Recurrent miscarriages- many miscarriages are due to abnormal embryos
• Previous abnormal baby or previous pregnancy terminated due to fetal abnormality
  

This procedure is available at very few centres in India and is expensive.