Team Miracle at Cyprus IVF Centre have upgraded their IMSI system to offer patients the most technologically advanced sperm selection process in the world!

What is IMSI

Intracytoplasmic Morphologically Selected Sperm Injection, known as IMSI, is the method whereby the most morphologically normal sperm is selected from a sperm sample and used for fertilisation via intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI). The goal of IMSI is to select the “best sperm” to be injected into the egg to maximise the possibility of achieving a successful pregnancy.

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Team Miracle’s IMSI System

Team Miracle are extremely proud to announce the introduction of a brand new microscope system which is the only one of its kind in the world. Rather than sourcing a “ready-made” microscope, Team Miracle have custom built their own system by obtaining the very best individual parts from Germany, Japan and America including the highest quality objective lens available which allows for magnificently detailed images of eggs, sperm and embryos, 6,000x closer than a standard ICSI microscope.

In addition, a team of engineers, compiled of specialists from across the globe including Canada, Denmark and Turkey, spent a week within the Team Miracle laboratory, calibrating the machinery to ensure perfect performance.

Introducing IMSI Strict – The Technical Details

IMSI Strict is the only automated software solution to provide live analysis of sperm morphology using the highest possible magnification. “Tygerberg Strict Criteria” motile sperm organelle morphology examination (MSOME) is combined with software-based categorisation of sperm based on the following criteria:

  • Head shape
  • Head size
  • Mid piece
  • Number of vacuoles

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By analysing each individual aspect of a single sperm, the Team Miracle embryologist can easily see whether a sperm has been categorised as normal, sub-normal or abnormal by the IMSI Strict software.

higher-pregnancy-rates-and-lower-miscarriage-rates-compared-to-conventional-ICSI

The combination of the brand new custom microscope with the IMSI strict system allows the sperm to be examined in greater detail, including the nucleus which contains the sperm’s genetic material. Research studies have shown that the IMSI technique allows for selection of better quality sperm and results in higher pregnancy rates and lower miscarriage rates compared to conventional ICSI.

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The Hamilton Thorne IMSI-Strict software aids in the IMSI process by measuring the size and shape of the sperm head, detecting midpiece abnormalities and identifying vacuoles on the live sperm sample. The results are displayed in real-time to assist the embryologist in selection of sperm to use for ICSI.

 

Team Miracle Success

Using the new system, Team Miracle have already been successful in achieving a pregnancy with a test case where the patients had been told by other IVF centres that their only hope of conception was using donor sperm. The male partner had a normal morphology of 1%, meaning that the sperm sample contained 99% abnormal spermatozoa with extremely poor motility and count. The Team Miracle embryologists worked around the clock on the sperm sample and the IMSI strict software helped to identify a few normal sperm for fertilisation. The female patient has achieved a positive pregnancy blood test with increasing HCG numbers. Team Miracle are extremely confident that we can help many more patients who previously had no hope due to male factor infertility.

Please contact a Team Miracle coordinator for more information about our IMSI options.