Antega South Africa · Learning Videos
Dr Mohamed Cassim goes through the points in an IVF cycle where things can fall short — egg and sperm quality, fertilisation, embryo development, the lining of the womb and implantation.
An IVF cycle can be unsuccessful at several points: fewer eggs than hoped, eggs that are not mature, fertilisation that does not happen, embryos that stop developing in culture, or a good embryo that simply does not implant. This talk works through those stages and the factors clinics look at afterwards, including egg and sperm quality, laboratory conditions, the lining of the womb and underlying conditions. An unsuccessful cycle does not mean something was done wrongly. Treatment can go exactly as planned — stimulation on track, eggs collected, fertilisation achieved, embryos developing, a smooth transfer — and still not result in a pregnancy, because each transfer carries a probability rather than a promise. That is why clinics offer a follow-up review to look at what the cycle showed and whether anything should change next time.
Recorded in 2022. Treat any suggestion in the recording about how to "minimise" failure as one clinician's 2022 view: ask your own clinic what current evidence supports for your situation, and read our IVF add-ons guide before paying for extra treatments.
Use these guides for general background, and check the South Africa organisations named on this page for local detail.
Dr Antonio Rodrigues looks at repeated unsuccessful IVF from the clinic's side: what gets reviewed, and what can be changed for a further attempt.
Clinical psychologist Mandy Rodrigues talks about the emotional weight of repeated unsuccessful IVF, and what helps people carry it.
Michelle Groenewald, who works in perinatal bereavement support through the Hope Box Initiative, talks about living with pregnancy and baby loss.
This video was produced by Fertility Show Africa Expert Talks (programme curated with IFAASA and SASREG) and is shared for education only. It is not medical advice and does not replace guidance from your own doctor or fertility clinic. Naming an organisation does not imply a partnership with Antega.
