Doctors have used AI to help women get pregnant through IVF by matching the strongest sperm with the best quality eggs.
The pioneering treatment can maximise the chances of success, sparing couples years of heartache and the heavy financial burden.
The first woman in the UK to conceive using AI throughout the fertilisation process has described the new technology as a ‘miracle’.
Leading consultant Mr Ali Al Chami, from Avenues Fertility Clinic, in North London, which carried out the procedure, said: ‘This is a game-changer for fertility care.’
One in six couples experience infertility and more than 50,000 patients undergo IVF in the UK every year, with the number rising annually.
Only one in three women get pregnant after the first cycle, which costs an average of more than £5,000.
Traditionally doctors have relied on human assessments to make decisions about the health of the sperm or egg.
But AI systems, trained on vast data sets of ultrasound images, patient health metrics, and time-lapse embryo monitoring, are being used in some clinics to select high-quality sperm and eggs, and then embryos, for both fertilisation and implantation.
Doctors have used AI to help women get pregnant through IVF by matching the strongest sperm with the best quality eggs (stock image)
The pioneering treatment can maximise the chances of success (stock image)
Traditionally doctors have relied on human assessments to make decisions about the health of the sperm or egg (stock image)
Elena, 36, from South London, told the Sunday Express she has become the first woman in the UK to conceive using AI throughout the whole process.
She is now 23 weeks pregnant and credits the advanced technology with changing her life.
Elena discovered she was expecting in August after AI selected which of her husband’s sperm to use.
The fertilised embryos with the greatest chance of giving her a baby, also chosen using AI, were then transplanted into her womb.
The mother-to-be said: ‘What has happened is phenomenal. The technology is incredible. It is like a miracle.’
Dr Jyoti Taneja, medical director of Avenues Fertility Clinic, said: ‘We have traditionally selected sperm by analysing shape and other features under the microscope.
‘But AI can assess the health in ways such as movement patterns.
‘It can make these assessments with more accuracy, in real time and at greater speed.
‘We also use AI to give us a meticulous evaluation of eggs. This can include egg maturity, shape and size.
‘This approach improves IVF outcomes by predicting the likelihood of conception and minimising unnecessary interventions.
‘This technology provides hope for many couples and individuals facing fertility challenges.’
Her clinic also uses AI to assess the health of each fertilised egg.
One in six couples experience infertility and more than 50,000 patients undergo IVF in the UK every year, with the number rising annually (stock image)
AI systems, trained on vast data sets of ultrasound images, patient health metrics, and time-lapse embryo monitoring, are being used in some clinics to select high-quality sperm and eggs, and then embryos, for both fertilisation and implantation (stock image)
Dr Taneja, a consultant who has worked as a specialist in reproductive medicine at top London hospitals including Barts, and Guys and St Thomas’, said: ‘This is a dynamic and exciting era for fertility care.
‘AI technology is rapidly paving the way for a revolution in IVF treatment. In five years, I believe all clinics will adopt this integration of AI innovation.
‘For patients it means less emotional, physical and financial risk because it means higher chances of success.’
A study last week showed scientists can use AI to help decide when to give a hormone injection to women before preparing eggs for collection.
Scientists have been exploring and demonstrating the use of AI in IVF for at least five years.
Four years ago experts writing in the Journal Reproduction and Fertility concluded: ‘Incorporating AI technology into the IVF clinic may be the next frontier in the journey towards personalised reproductive medicine and improved fertility outcomes.’
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