I did a natural cycle FET at SGF three years ago. I was told at that time the pregnancy rate was slightly lower but the live birth rate was the same as medicated. (Ie More women get pregnant on a medicated cycle but more also have miscarriages, presumably because the meds encourage/allow bad embryos to implant when they would have failed in a natural cycle). But since the live birth is what I cared about and the rates were the same, I was happy to skip all the extra meds. Fwiw I did have suppositories during a natural cycle FEt - just not daily shots.

Which clinics around here will do natural FETs? Do you monitor at home with OPKs?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Natural cycle has a lower success rate because you go with whatever embryo you got in that cycle. Medicated cycle results in more embryos so they can pick and choose the best to transfer. There is no inherent problem for natural cycle.

FET means frozen embryo transfer. The same number of embryos are available regardless of whether you do a natural or medicated FET cycle as they have been previously frozen. This has no relationship to a “natural” IVF cycle which is what you seem to be thinking of.

There is a difference in quality of embryo when you can pick the best embryo from multiple ones from a stim cycle, vs just go with the one you got from natural cycle. A woman who goes in stim my have 10 eggs retrieved which resulted in five or more embryos would have a higher rate of success at her first FET, if she has them PGS tested and sorted, than just roll with her one egg retrieved from natural cycle.

You are confusing natural cycle IVF versus natural cycle FET, where a frozen embryo (from a stimulated retrieval) is transferred but no meds are used to prepare the uterus. OP is asking about the latter.

Both of my children came from natural cycle FETs after a medicated FET failed first.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Natural cycle has a lower success rate because you go with whatever embryo you got in that cycle. Medicated cycle results in more embryos so they can pick and choose the best to transfer. There is no inherent problem for natural cycle.

FET means frozen embryo transfer. The same number of embryos are available regardless of whether you do a natural or medicated FET cycle as they have been previously frozen. This has no relationship to a “natural” IVF cycle which is what you seem to be thinking of.

There is a difference in quality of embryo when you can pick the best embryo from multiple ones from a stim cycle, vs just go with the one you got from natural cycle. A woman who goes in stim my have 10 eggs retrieved which resulted in five or more embryos would have a higher rate of success at her first FET, if she has them PGS tested and sorted, than just roll with her one egg retrieved from natural cycle.

Anonymous wrote:Natural cycle has a lower success rate because you go with whatever embryo you got in that cycle. Medicated cycle results in more embryos so they can pick and choose the best to transfer. There is no inherent problem for natural cycle.

FET means frozen embryo transfer. The same number of embryos are available regardless of whether you do a natural or medicated FET cycle as they have been previously frozen. This has no relationship to a “natural” IVF cycle which is what you seem to be thinking of.

Natural cycle has a lower success rate because you go with whatever embryo you got in that cycle. Medicated cycle results in more embryos so they can pick and choose the best to transfer. There is no inherent problem for natural cycle.

If you had a failed cycle consider ERA

Some docs prefer medicated because the timing is well determined so it can be easier to plan for both you and docs. If you have a regular cycle the studies aren’t clear on one being significantly better than the other. I’d pick whichever seems easier and less stressful if your doc is good with both.

Although the general consensus is that there is no difference between natural and medicated FET cycles, there are definitely studies that have found greater success rates with natural cycles (albeit these are retrospective and lower quality studies).

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31338657/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24669825/


The Cochrane review (looks at all the studies and rates quality) found insufficient evidence to prefer one over the other
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28675921/

Medicated is not superior. Comes down to personal preference and variability of one's cycle.

Not true that natural cycle has a lower success rate. The success rates are the same.

Wow Thank you for that update and I didn't realize natural cycle had a lower success rate

Usually natural cycle has lower success rate, the physical toll is less, the hassle is the same: monitoring, the late night trigger shot, the waiting room etc. If you are emotionally okay then why not.

My doctor said there is no difference in outcomes between Natural and Medicated FET cycles. Medicated does allow more control over the timing but involves greater medication expense. I think the scratch test is done the cycle before the FET cycle.

For what it’s worth, the one time I tried to do a natural FET, my body decided to go crazy and not ovulate til day 25 or so, by which time we had scrapped the cycle.

Which is better. My previous FET failed. Can i squeeze in a scratch test if I do Natural cycle FET versus doing a medicated. Is one better than the other.