5AA success/failure stories

[Rj1988]

Hi folks got my eggs retrieved in my second IVF cycle.

20 eggs
16 mature eggs
11 fertilised
All were behind on day 3
Day 5 - only 1 made it to blastocyst 5AB

Please share your success/failure stories with any AB grade embryos.

Hi OP, I had twins from a fresh round in 2018, using 2 x 5AA embryos, and also ha had 2 blasts frozen on day 6 - a 4AA and a 4AB. We did FETs with single embryos last year, both started hatching after thawing but the 5AA resulted in a BFN while the 5AB we had transferred the following month stuck and I'm now 37 weeks pregnant. Good luck xxx

That's amazing @SamoyedFan123
Sorry I have a 5AB not 5AA. Posted it by mistake and now can't edit

In all honesty, I would try not to get too hung up on the grading. People who have top quality blasts sadly don't have them stick and some crap grade blasts result in live births! Our only embryo hadn't reached blast stage by day 5 so was ungradeable, but they thought it was worth a shot - I'm 33 weeks pregnant now 🤷‍♀️ Wishing you luck 🤞

@Rj1988 My 5AA from fresh transfer didn't work (my AF started just 4/5 days after the transfer). My 4AA in FET cycle tried to implant but looking like a chemical (my hcg is low, awaiting results of repeat bloods)

@Rj1988 Best of luck with your transfer and fingers crossed for you!

@MGee123 you are right grading is only good for selection but there is no guarantee they will stick or not. I am really worried as my egg quality has been classified as poor so out of 20 only 1 made it, since we are not PGD I can't be sure if it's a good quality or not

@2mumlife - sending you lots of luck and hopes!! I was reading an article that 4 grade expansion have better implantation rate than 5 after Thawing

Let's us know how you get on

Hi OP - my 5AA embryo was an early miscarriage but my 4BC embryo was successful and resulted in my dc. There’s no way to tell, even with PGT if the embryo will work or not. Fingers tightly crossed for you!

@2mumlife so sorry to hear about your recent transfer, hope this one is just a slow starter and you get there xx

Hi Op. I too was worried about this -I don’t think I ever got the top grade AA but my first transfer was a 5AB I think and that was a chemical and then my second was B+B+ and that stuck and is now my one year old. I know it’s hard but try not to get too stuck on it. The embryologist told me is basically judging a book by its cover and we all know we shouldn’t do that! There is only so much they can see and predict.

Based on my egg quality they would have recommended putting two back on my second go but I’m glad I didn’t as might have been twins (lovely but decided not for me) because it did stick. Good luck!

Hi @Rj1988 I've had two 5AA transfers (one fresh, one FET) and BFN both times sadly, so top quality grading is not always everything you hope it to be! Both failures are more than likely down to my age (eggs collected at 41). Currently 9dp5dt with a 4AA FET and holding out to OTD to test, but not feeling too hopeful.

A 5AB is a really good embryo and there are so so many stories about 'lower' grades which work perfectly. How the embryo looks in the lab is one element of the complex jigsaw, not the only piece.

@lucymills1234 - I wish you all the luck!

4AA is an excellent quality again and you have done very well for your age with 3 top quality embryos

At 33 I could only get one embryo out of 20 egg so I think age cannot be blamed all the time

@mowglika & @mouse1234567 - thanks for sharing your experience! I need lots of luck and prayers and that's the only thing that will make it work

My first round I had 13 eggs collected 10 mature 5 fertilised had one left on transfer day a 5aa she is now 8 months old! Good luck X

@Ladyraven0483 - wow it was your lucky one!

Hi @Rj1988 just wondering how they know it's your eggs that are the issue? Did you partner have a semen analysis including DNA fragmentation before the round?

We had 1 5AB which sadly didn't take (I'm 34 and I have low AMH and only got 2 eggs) but after this round we tested my husbands sperm for DNA frag and it came back high so it could also have been this as it can lead to poor implantation. All his other sperm tests have always come back great so it was quite a shock.

Really hope your one does work out for you x

@Dbop100 - they only did his sperm assessment in nhs which came back normal, only the morphology was low and we have previously done dna fragmentation test too which was all good but this is like 2 years old.

Not sure if we should repeat this?

@Rj1988 that's great that you've already had this tested before. I guess see how this cycle pans out. If he's had any kind of significant changes in the last 2 years might be worth thinking about it, has he had Covid for example? We both had it in October and my husband still has long Covid headaches and part of me wonders if that's had an effect. Good luck with this cycle though!x

@Dbop100
That's a very interesting question you asked.
So my husband fell really sick in feb 2020 he had super high fever so we got him admitted to the hospital and they ruled out Covid bec at that point in UK apparently there were only 1 or 2 Covid case but his fever was unexplained,

so I would like to think maybe it was Covid.
Luckily I haven't been diagnosed with Covid yet and I have taken both my doses.

I am sure Covid creates a lot of inflammation and stress in the body and both are not good for egg and sperm quality.

Did you do your IVF via nhs? And did they explained why your AMH is low?

@Rj1988 unfortunately the NHS weren't very helpful about my AMH, they told me it wasn't an issue in stopping me getting pregnant 🤔 but that it was lower than their eligibility threshold so I didn't qualify for funding for IVF with them and that I should go private. So we went private with Care Fertility. They never looked into what might be causing it, I don't think anyone really knows for sure, there are some people who have endometriosis which lowers it but that's not the case for everyone. I do have painful periods so have been trying to get a laparoscopy to check for Endo for over a year, but that has to be done very carefully avoiding my ovaries so it doesn't lower my AMH even further! x

For those reading this thread later

Unfortunately my 5AB became 4AB after thawing, got implanted but miscarried end of week 4

I am very disheartened right now as I have implantation failure of 5AA. , I have now remaining 9 embryos 5AB , 4AB... but m hopeless as 5AA failed m scared that the may be the next also got failed as comparatively less quality embryo than the first one.

Lots of prayers for you. M in same boat my remaining embryo is 5ab 4ab 3ab 5bb etc. Needs prayers

My 5AA failed but my 5AB was successful and is now a bouncing 4 month old baby boy 😊

My 5AB is almost 28 weeks along and the midwives are very happy with their progress so far.

There's a lot more to embryos than their pre-transfer grading, so try not to focus too much on that. Clinics wouldn't transfer embryos that didn't have a chance of becoming a viable pregnancy. Good luck!