Embryo Development

The embryos are removed from the incubator briefly every day by the embryology staff and checked for cell number and grade. A higher cell number and a lower grade (grade 1 is the best) correlates with increased embryo viability and improved implantation and pregnancy rates.

The embryos seen below demonstrate a normally developing grade 1, 2-cell embryo (on the left). The picture in the middle demonstrates an 8-cell, grade 1 embryo. These embryos can be transferred to the uterus at this stage or they can be held in culture until blastocyst formation, picture on right.

Click on the below Images for video clips :