My husband has low morph and count, and the RE said not to bother with IUI or NCIVF, saying the odds they would work are the same as regular intercourse. With regular ivf, you would hope to freeze some to use later.....
The RE said that we could do NCIVF but he doesn't recommend it unless there are issues with mess becaus of the cost.

I am 31 (32 in march) so time is a tiny factor in us going right to ivf, but at the same time I trust when he says that it probably won't work. We are with GW. Starting a cycle ASAP in 2013 with new insurance, but heads up I'd you change to md ipa, it's hard to get an appt for the referral.

Good luck!!

Anonymous wrote:Why don't you look into NCIVF at Dominion. If all of your other stats are good, you might be good candidates. ICSI is included in the $4400 price tag.

I'm not sure I'd do NCIVF if you have a sperm issue (esp morphology as opposed to low counts). Some sperm can look okay but still have issues. With NCIVF you only have one egg, and with a MF dx you can't be sure of the sperm quality. I think if the first round didn't work (hopefully it will), you could consider NCIVF at a later round assuming you have a high fraction that reaches the embryo stage the first time.

Anonymous wrote:I can't figure out if its worth it to change insurance when we've gone through all these rounds of testing with Kaiser. Wouldn't have to waste more time to do that over again.

I don't think anyone would require you to retest if you have the records, and the diagnosis was pretty well substantiated by the test results.

NP here. I could have almost written your post with the morphology numbers. I'm on Kaiser federal insurance and going through the final stages of the infertility testing (1 more Sperm Analysis - we've had 3). I'm also waiting to see what they'll cover in our case. I can't figure out if its worth it to change insurance when we've gone through all these rounds of testing with Kaiser. Wouldn't have to waste more time to do that over again.

We had similar stats and chose not to bother with IUI, went straight to IVF.

If your insurance doesn't cover either, I'd go straight to IVF. DH's numbers were similar to yours. Our insurance covered IUI, but not IVF. Our doc suggest that since at the time age was not a factor (I was 29) it wouldn't hurt to try a few rounds of IUI. Doc said based on DH's numbers it was very unlikely that we'd get pregnant with IUI, but reasoned it was worth a shot, since we were still relatively young so wouldn't be "losing" a lot of time if IUI didn't work, and hey, if it did the insurance would cover it.
As predicted, the IUI didn't work. IVF worked on our first cycle. If insurance hadn't covered IUI, I would definitely have gone straight to IVF.

+1 for NCIVF.

My husband had male factor, 2% morphology, 2% motility but counts differ each time. We did 3 IUIs and all failed. Since your RE thinks you can try IUI, I would try just a couple of times before the end of the year. In the meantime, look at other insurances and see who covers IVF and switch during open season. That way, you would have tried IUI and may have IVF coverage for the new year if you need to do IVF. I have fed insurance and MDIPA, Aetna and Kaiser cover IVF. I've used both MDIPA and Aetna for IVF. Hated Aetna!!!!!! MDIPA was great for IVF. You might want to read other threads about the pros and cons with different insurances.

OP here, I am ovulating regularly and in my early 30s so I assume I will be doing clomid. A few rounds of IUI is not going to make IVF impossible for us but of course the less money we spend the better.

FWIW, I think a lot of your decision depends on your finances and whether you would do injectibles or something like Clomid. At our clinic, a few IUIs with injectibles would have cost as much as a single IVF cycle...

I have heard such divergent opinions on morphology that it is hard to figure out just how important 2% is. His other numbers are good especially for IUI purposes. I know IVF gives me a much better chance than even 3 rounds of IUI put together but it is also more expensive and invasive.

Don't freak out about morphology. My husband was 1% morphology at one lab, and 7% at another lab, both using strict. We got pregnant in four months. As RE explained, morphology is very subjective.

PP I agree try Dominion

Personally, I'd go to IVF. We have no morphology problems, and 3 iuis didn't work.

Why don't you look into NCIVF at Dominion. If all of your other stats are good, you might be good candidates. ICSI is included in the $4400 price tag.

Husband's sperm analysis came back with 2% morphology (strict) both times. Counts were good, 95 million. Motility were 60% first time and 35% second time. We are both 34 with no known problem on my part. Our RE recommended doing a few rounds of IUI but I keep reading on the internet that 2% morphology will make fertilization difficult and IVF/ICSI is our only option. Am I wasting money and time on IUI? Our insurance doesn't cover either.