PGT-M is an advanced lab technique that can increase the likelihood of IVF success

Preimplantation genetic testing for monogenic disorders, or PGT-M, can help patients end the cycle of inheritable genetic illness and welcome a healthy baby. Our Austin fertility doctors recommend this form of testing as part of an IVF cycle when both partners carry a genetic illness.

Once we receive the test results, our team will know which embryos have or carry the condition, as well as which ones do not. Using this information, we will only transfer an embryo that doesn’t have the illness.

Why is preimplantation genetic testing for monogenic disorders important?

Some patients may know that they have or carry certain genetic disorders. However, our Austin fertility doctors have worked with many couples who were asymptomatic carriers and unaware of their status before having preconception genetic testing. For example, one in 31 Americans, or 10 million people, is a symptomless carrier of cystic fibrosis.

Most of the diseases that we screen for with PGT-M are autosomal recessive disorders. This means that an individual will have the disorder if they inherit two abnormal copies of the gene. In this case, the baby is “affected” (has the disease). Babies who have one normal and one abnormal gene are “carriers.” Babies who don’t have the abnormal gene are “unaffected.”

PGT-M can help your doctor transfer a healthy embryo

Preconception genetic testing can analyze a blood or saliva sample to search for the presence of single gene defects that can lead to genetic disorders. Here are some examples of these disorders.

• Cystic fibrosis
• Sickle cell disease
• Muscular dystrophy
• Polycystic kidney disease
• Tay-Sachs disease
• Hemophilia

You can order preconception genetic testing from Ovation^® Genetics to determine whether you and your partner have genes that could cause your baby to have a genetic illness. If you have or carry such an illness, IVF with PGT-M could be right for you.

After your IVF embryos grow in the lab, the embryologist will take a small biopsy from each one. They will then send the cells to an accredited genetics lab. That laboratory will use either a known probe or take genetic material from your blood to create a genetic probe specific to the condition you carry. The genetics lab will combine this probe with the cells from each of your IVF embryos. This will allow them to determine whether an embryo has the abnormality.

Using this information, our Austin fertility doctors will only transfer embryos that do not have the abnormality. Doing so increases the likelihood of you having a healthy baby. Contact us to schedule a consultation with one of our doctors and learn more about in vitro fertilization with PGT-M.