Common Misconceptions

Misconception: "IVF always works first time."

Reality: Success rates for IVF vary widely with age and individual circumstances but average approximately 25-30% per cycle for women under 35 in the UK (HFEA data). Many couples require multiple cycles. Older women have significantly lower success rates. The treatment is neither simple nor guaranteed, and the emotional and financial cost of repeated cycles is substantial.

Misconception: "IVF babies are not 'natural' or are different from naturally conceived babies."

Reality: Once an embryo is implanted into the uterus, development proceeds exactly as in natural pregnancy. IVF children are genetically normal and develop in the same way as naturally conceived children. The "in vitro" aspect refers only to the fertilisation step, not to the subsequent pregnancy or the resulting person.

Misconception: "Clomifene is the same as IVF."

Reality: Clomifene therapy is a much simpler fertility treatment taken as a tablet. It stimulates the body's own FSH and LH release to encourage natural ovulation and natural conception. IVF is a much more involved procedure involving egg collection, laboratory fertilisation, and embryo transfer. Clomifene is typically tried before IVF as it is less invasive and less expensive.