PGD is often used by couples who don’t have an infertility issue but know they carry a serious genetic disorder, with the aim of having a child free of the disease. A genetic work up is required which involves blood samples from each partner and may require additional samples from other family members. This work up process ultimately enables scientists to identify all the affected and non-affected DNA patterns in the patient’s embryos. At Genea, we have experience with more than 230 genetic diseases as part of our PGD program so far. These conditions are often disabling, have no prevention, cure or proven treatments, beyond symptomatic care. For example, Duchenne muscular dystrophy, Huntington disease, Leigh’s disease and Fragile X. PGD also screens for cystic fibrosis which is the most common single gene disorder screened for at Genea.
PGS, is often used by couples who are older, have experienced recurrent miscarriage or have had a number of failed embryo transfers following IVF treatment. It doesn’t require a genetic work up but rather screens embryos to ensure they have the correct number and order of chromosomes.
PGS maximises patients’ potential to have a baby by reducing miscarriage rates* and increasing live birth rates*.
PGS results are significant, particularly for women over the age of 38:
