Newlife IVF’s team of fertility specialists, embryologists, counsellors, nurses and support staff are dedicated to helping others achieve their dream of a family. When it comes to your fertility future, we combine best scientific practice with a personalised treatment plan tailored to your unique needs to maximise your chance of achieving a healthy pregnancy. We’re proud of our approach to fertility care, and our IVF success rates speak for themselves.
As the scientific processes and technology used in IVF have improved, so too have IVF success rates.
With one in six people affected by infertility, the use of assisted reproductive technology (ART), such as IVF, is at an all-time high among couples and individuals who are starting or growing their families. In fact, almost 96,000 ART treatment cycles were performed in Australia in 2020, a 7.6% increase from 2019.1
More than 18,000 babies were born from treatment cycles in 2020 – the highest yearly record – highlighting the positive relationship between advances in fertility treatment and subsequent pregnancy and birth rates.
Factors that influence your IVF success
Many factors can influence a couple or individual’s IVF journey and the ability to achieve a healthy pregnancy and baby. Factors known to impact the outcome of fertility treatment include the age of the woman at the time of egg retrieval, the cause of infertility, the body mass index (BMI) of both gamete (egg and sperm) providers, lifestyle factors (smoking, recreational drug use and alcohol consumption) and medication use. This article provides an overview of the most important factors that influence your chance of conceiving with IVF.
As each couple and individual’s fertility journey is unique, we recommend that you discuss your specific circumstances with one of our caring and experienced fertility specialists.
Newlife IVF’s latest success rates
The IVF success rates shown here represent the clinical pregnancy and live birth outcomes from embryo transfers performed during the FY21 year. Results for both fresh and frozen embryo transfer cycles are shown separately. The women included in these outcomes used their own eggs, and the age represents the age of the woman at the time of egg retrieval (otherwise known as egg collection or egg pickup). Embryos resulted from either IVF or ICSI insemination methods.
Note: these outcomes are based on women that had a viable embryo for transfer. Unfortunately, not every IVF treatment cycle will result in egg collection, an embryo for transfer, or cryopreservation (egg or embryo freezing).
Maternal age directly impacts the success of IVF and other fertility treatments. Therefore, when reviewing success rates, it’s important to look at data specific to your own age group.
The clinical pregnancy and live birth rates included below are defined as per the Australian and New Zealand Assisted Reproductive Database (ANZARD) definition. If you’d like to know more about interpreting success rate data, refer to the Fertility Society of Australia (FSA) guide “Interpreting Pregnancy Rates: a consumer guide”.
Pregnancies and births following fresh embryo transfers
The outcomes below represent fresh embryo transfers on day 5 in FY21. Approximately 97% of our fresh transfers use day 5 blastocysts.
Source: Newlife IVF success rates represent clinical pregnancy and live birth outcomes from embryo transfers performed in fresh embryo transfer cycles during FY21 year. The women included in the outcomes used their own eggs and the age represents the age of the woman at the time of egg retrieval. Embryos were generated utilising either IVF or ICSI insemination methods.
In Australia and New Zealand, the latest national average live birth success rate for women under 30 is 40.8% per embryo transfer. In line with the impact of age on fertility, this figure is lower for older women: 36.5% for women aged 30–34, 25.3% for women aged 35–39 and 9.4% for women aged 40–44.1
Comparatively, the above graph shows that Newlife IVF’s success rate data exceeds the national average at every age interval.
Pregnancies and births following frozen embryo transfer
Our frozen embryo transfers are blastocyst-stage embryos. The graph below shows outcomes for frozen embryo transfers from FY21.
Source: Newlife IVF success rates represent clinical pregnancy and live birth outcomes from embryo transfers performed in frozen embryo transfer cycles during FY21 year. The women included in the outcomes used their own eggs and the age represents the age of the woman at the time of egg retrieval. Embryos were generated utilising either IVF or ICSI insemination methods.
In Australia and New Zealand, the latest national average live birth success rate per embryo transfer for women under 30 is 35.9% and 36.0% for women aged 30–34. This figure decreased to 31.3% for women aged 35–39 and 21.0% for women aged 40–44.1
Comparatively, the above graph shows that Newlife IVF’s success rate data exceeds the national average at every age interval.
Pregnancies and births with chromosomally tested embryos (PGT)
Embryos may be chromosomally screened before transfer, allowing us to select the highest-quality embryo available for transfer, thus increasing the likelihood of a successful pregnancy. Not every couple or individual requires this type of testing. However, your fertility specialist may recommend genetic screening if advanced maternal age is a factor, or you have experienced recurrent miscarriage or multiple failed IVF cycles. Where genetic screening has been employed, the pregnancy rate per embryo transfer is likely to be higher – and this is one of the key reasons why IVF success rates have improved over recent years.
The below data represents our success rates when genetically tested embryos were used in frozen embryo transfers. Note: the number of women in the < 30 years age group represents a small group.
Source: Newlife IVF success rates represent clinical pregnancy and live birth outcomes from embryo transfers performed in frozen embryo transfer cycles during FY21 year. The women included in the outcomes used their own eggs and the age represents the age of the woman at the time of egg retrieval. Embryos were generated utilising either IVF or ICSI insemination methods.
In Australia and New Zealand, the latest national average live birth success rate for women under 30 is 47.2% per embryo transfer with PGT. This figure decreased to 40.8% for women aged 30–34, 41.6% for women aged 35–39 and 40.0% for women aged 40–44.1
Comparatively, the above graph shows that Newlife IVF’s success rate data exceeds the national average at every age interval.
Understanding your chance of IVF success
No fertility journey is like another, which is why we provide personalised fertility treatment to suit your needs. For a realistic understanding of your chance of success, it’s best to consult with a fertility expert who can tailor their advice according to your unique situation. To book an appointment with one of our caring, experienced fertility doctors, please call (03) 8080 8933 or email [email protected]. You can also schedule your fertility appointment through our online booking page.
References
Newman JE, Paul RC, Chambers GM. Assisted reproductive technology in Australia and New Zealand 2020. Sydney: National Perinatal Epidemiology and Statistics Unit, the University of New South Wales, Sydney, 2022. ↩︎
Additional lifestyle factors that can affect your chances of IVF success, because of their negative impact on egg and sperm health, include your diet and nutritional status, carrying too little or too much weight, high caffeine and alcohol intake, smoking, recreational drug use, some medications and exposure to endocrine disrupting chemicals (e.g. bisphenols, phthalates, parabens etc.).
Due to advancements in the technology used to freeze then thaw embryos (where more than 95% of embryos now survive the process), frozen embryo use in IVF has become more common.
The highest quality embryo is selected, thawed and transferred into the womb. Doing so allows your fertility doctor to align the embryo transfer with a time when your uterus is most receptive to ‘receive’ the embryo, known as the window of receptivity.
Other situations where frozen embryo use is the preferred option include instances where progesterone levels are high following egg retrieval (altering the window of receptivity), in patients with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) or when genetic testing of embryos is recommended.
On the other hand, fresh embryo transfer avoids the need for the freeze-thaw process, potentially resulting in a shorter time to pregnancy.
The likelihood of IVF success will ultimately depend on your individual circumstances, with success rates heavily influenced by your age, the cause of your fertility issues, and the number of embryos transferred.
When interpreting success rate data, it’s important to note that not all IVF treatment cycles are the same and a particular success rate may or may not apply to you as an individual. It is best to discuss your medical history and your personal chances of success with IVF with your fertility specialist.
If you’re currently undergoing IVF treatment, you should prioritise data relating to treatment cycles that most closely resemble your own. For example, one way IVF treatment cycles can vary is by whether they employ fresh or frozen embryo transfers. If your own treatment cycle will use fresh embryo transfer, it will be more relevant for you to look at success rates for IVF cycles employing fresh embryo transfers (in women of a similar age to you), rather than frozen embryo transfer.
If you are looking at overseas data, keep in mind that single embryo transfer is considered the best practice in Australia (to avoid the risks associated with multiple pregnancies). However, international clinics may offer multiple embryo transfers (transferring more than one embryo into the womb at a time), in which case their IVF success rates per embryo transfer may appear higher.
