Artificial fertilisation using IVF or ICSI requires that female eggs firstly be retrieved from the follicles.
If sufficient numbers of egg follicles have matured after hormonal stimulation, they are retrieved 36 hours after injection of the ovulation-triggering hormone and before ovulation has actually occurred. Your reproductive medicine specialist will access the ovary and carefully remove the eggs using a fine needle. All actions can be observed step-by-step on the ultrasound screen, allowing the treatment to be carried out with the utmost care. The procedure takes less than 20 minutes and is performed under a short general anaesthetic.