Aneuploidies are defined as chromosomal alterations that embryos can present, which can lead to genetic diseases in future offspring and even be incompatible with life.
IVF-Life's track record, our techniques, and the experience and protocols our specialists employ are the factors that will enable us to diagnose these abnormalities and, consequently, prevent their development.
Aneuploid embryos are those that harbour certain variations in their genetic content that make them unsuitable for transfer to the patient’s uterus.
The karyotype of a person, or, in other words, the set of chromosomes that each person possesses, is made up of 23 pairs of chromosomes, 22 of which are named autosomal and the remaining pair corresponds to the so-called sex chromosomes (XX in the case of women and XY in the case of men).
One of the most common examples of aneuploidy detected in embryos regarding the number of autosomal chromosomes is Down’s syndrome, which involves a trisomy of chromosome 21 (having three copies of chromosome 21 instead of two). While people with this condition currently have a life expectancy of up to 65 years, according to experts in the field, others do not have the same prognosis.
Other common trisomies are Edwards’ syndrome (presence of an extra chromosome 18) and Patau syndrome (trisomy of chromosome 13), where in both cases the newborn usually passes before reaching their first year of life.
On the other hand, aneuploidies linked to the sex chromosomes include:
Numerous investigations have been carried out over the years regarding this matter, with the aim of finding out what factors trigger the appearance of aneuploidy. The reason most supported by experts is linked to the production of the gametes - eggs and spermatozoa – also being particularly relevant the extent to which ovogenesis is influenced by the woman’s age.
As is well known, the older a woman is, the more difficult it becomes to achieve a pregnancy that does not lead to complications and that is successfully carried to term. Similarly, the rate of embryonic aneuploidy increases considerably, especially after the age of 39, when almost 50% of the embryos that are generated have some kind of anomaly.
Although a small percentage of these may have the capacity to implant, it is common for them to end up leading to miscarriage and, if this does not occur, the baby will be born with the corresponding alteration. Due to this reason, specialists in reproductive medicine always recommend the use of aneuploidy diagnosis techniques in order to guarantee a simpler, more pleasant process, which also will not take too long.
Assisted reproduction offers experts and their patients the option of detecting aneuploidy in embryos through one of the techniques included in the so-called preimplantation genetic testing, specifically PGT-A (Preimplantation genetic testing for aneuploidy).
In order to carry it out, it is necessary to perform a biopsy of the trophectoderm cells of the embryos generated in an In vitro fertilisation treatment, when these are at day 5 of their development, that is, in the blastocyst stage. By analysing this sample, the specialised laboratory will provide information on the chromosomal content of the embryo and its viability before the transfer stage is reached. There are 3 possible results that can be obtained following preimplantation genetic testing PGT-A , all of which are detailed below.
As explained throughout the article, aneuploid embryos are those whose content shows some alteration in the number of autosomal or sex chromosomes, either a loss or a gain, and are therefore considered unsuitable for embryo transfer.
Conversely, euploid embryos are those containing 23 pairs of chromosomes and are those that are transferred to the maternal uterus or cryopreserved for this purpose in future cycles.
In addition to those already mentioned, there is another type of result that can occur: embryonic mosaicism. This means that the embryo contains two types of cells: some with abnormalities and others that are chromosomally "normal."
Mosaicism can occur in any type of cell in the body (somatic or germ cell) and occurs due to errors in cell division.
Mosaic embryos contain a mixture of chromosomally normal (euploid) cells and other abnormal (aneuploid) cells. These are not usually embryos that are chosen for transfer, but it is possible to choose to transfer them if there are no euploid embryos at all in the chamber.
This decision should only be made with the authorisation of the relevant specialists and after the woman or couple has been fully informed of the associated risks.
Many patients ask whether aneuploid embryos can be identified in another way, for instance, by studying their quality, and the answer to this is a resounding no, because even if an embryo is morphologically optimal, it can still harbour chromosomal abnormalities.
People who have not opted to undergo preimplantation genetic testing in their assisted reproduction process or who need confirmation that everything is going as expected, can also resort to prenatal testing. NIPT (non-invasive prenatal screening) can detect aneuploidies in the foetus through blood testing of the mother from the ninth week of gestation onwards.
Later in pregnancy, invasive prenatal tests such as chorionic villus sampling (CVS) or amniocentesis can also be employed, which, although they may be more reliable, carry a small risk of gestational loss. PGT-A is the perfect tool to find out about the aneuploidy of embryos when planning a pregnancy and, therefore, at IVF-Life we recommend that all our patients incorporate this technique into the treatment they undergo with us.
Privacy Policy
IVF-LIFE, hereby informs you of its privacy policy applied to personal data. The use of the website does not imply that the user must provide any information regarding their identity, and cannot be associated with a specific user by the company. In the event that personal data is provided, this data will be collected and used in accordance with the limitations and rights set out in the aforementioned regulation.
WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE PROCESSING OF YOUR DATA?
DATA CONTROLLER: IVF SPAIN ALICANTE S.L.U (hereinafter IVF-Life)
CIF: B-54973227
Postal Address: Avenida de Ansaldo, no. 13, 03540, Alicante (Alicante)
Contact with the Data Protection Officer: dpo@ivf-life-group.com
DATA CONTROLLER: Instituto Vasco de Fertilidad (hereinafter IVF-Life)
CIF: B95575874
Postal Address: Avenida de Tolosa, 71-73, 20018 Donostia / San Sebastián (Spain)
Contact with the Data Protection Officer: dpo@ivf-life-group.com
DATA CONTROLLER: IVF Spain Madrid (hereinafter IVF-Life)
CIF: B 85138113
Postal Address: C/ de Manuel de Falla, 6-8, 28036 Madrid (Spain)
Contact with the Data Protection Officer: dpo@ivf-life-group.com
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Depending on the products, services, or functionalities that you wish to enjoy, we may need to process different types of data. In general, this data will be, depending on the case, the following:
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- Connection, geolocation and navigation data.
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The use of certain services or requests addressed to IVF-LIFE are subject to the prior completion of the corresponding form. All the information provided by the User through the forms on the Portal for the above purposes or any other must be truthful.
To this end, the User guarantees the authenticity of all the data provided and will keep the information provided to IVF-LIFE perfectly up to date so that it corresponds at all times to the User's real situation. In any case, the User will be solely responsible for any false or inaccurate statements made and for any damage caused to IVF-LIFE or third parties because of the information provided.
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For the processing of data, IVF-LIFE adopts the security levels required by current European and national legislation on the Protection of Personal Data. Notwithstanding the above, technical security in a medium such as the Internet is not impregnable and there may be leaks due to the malicious actions of third parties.
Our services are aimed at people of legal age, in the event that some of our services are specifically aimed at minors, IVF-LIFE will request the consent of parents or guardians for the collection of personal data or, where appropriate, for the automated processing of data as set out in current legislation. If the User is a minor, they are required to have the prior consent of their parents or guardians before proceeding to the inclusion of their personal data in the forms on the Website.
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Depending on how you interact with our website, we will process your personal data for the following purposes:
To deal with requests or requests that you make through the different means incorporated into our website.
We only process the personal data that is strictly necessary to manage or resolve your request or application.
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To the extent that you subscribe to our newsletter, your personal data will be used for the periodic sending of company newsletters.
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If you follow us or contact us through the different social networks in which we are present, we will process the data that you provide to us through these for the sole purpose of responding to your messages or comments and managing our contact list.
Usability and quality analysis to improve our services (cookies).
If you access our platform, we inform you that we will process your browsing data for analytical and statistical purposes, i.e. to understand how users interact with our platform and thus be able to make improvements to it. Likewise, we sometimes carry out quality actions and surveys aimed at finding out the degree of satisfaction of our customers and users and detecting those areas in which we can improve.
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The legal basis that allows us to process your personal data also depends on the purpose for which we process them, so we will find different legal bases under the following purposes:
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The legal basis for the processing of your data is the informed consent to respond to queries raised through the website, forms and other means provided, which implies the prior reading and acceptance of these conditions by the interested party.
Marketing
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Social networking
The basis of legitimacy is the informed consent to respond to queries raised through the social network, as well as the time when you follow us and want to be part of our contact list.
Usability and quality analysis (cookies)
User consent to the use of cookies.
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Request for information. We will process your data for as long as it is necessary to deal with your request or request and thereafter 1 year.
Marketing
We will process your data until you unsubscribe or cancel your subscription to the newsletter.
Social media
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Personal data will not be transferred or communicated to third parties, except: legal obligation, we obtain your express consent, or we understand that there is a legitimate interest on our part, which will be duly communicated to you.
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You can access these social networks voluntarily and through the links available on the website itself or by accessing directly and on your own from your browser or installed app.
You should know that this website is not responsible for the use of the data that these social networks may make. However, when these data are generated in the social network and derive from an interaction with our website, we will not be held responsible for the use of such data.
In order to consent to our transfer from this website and the processing of your data, you should carefully read the privacy policy of the social network you wish to access:
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In this way, before clicking on the logos of the SS. RR. present on our website, you can inform yourself and make a redirection with prior knowledge of the processing of your data and on a voluntary basis.
Other technological services:
- WhatsApp: WhatsApp Privacy Policy
- Companies of the "IVF LIFE Group" on the legal basis of consent or legitimate interest: Instituto Vasco de Fertilidad S.L.U., with NIF B95575874 and address at Avda Tolosa, 71-73 Donostia (Gipuzkoa), and IVF Spain Madrid S.L., with NIF B85138113 and address at Calle Manuel de Falla, 6-8, 28036 Madrid.
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We undertake to respect the confidentiality of your personal data and to guarantee you the exercise of your rights.
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Ask us for access to the data we hold about you.
Ask us to rectify the data we already hold about you. Please note that by actively providing us with your personal information in any way, you warrant that it is true and accurate and you undertake to notify us of any changes or modifications to it.
Ask us to delete your data to the extent that they are no longer necessary for the purpose for which we need to process them as we have previously informed you, or to the extent that we no longer have the legitimacy to do so.
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To receive the personal data concerning you that you have provided to us in a structured, commonly used and machine-readable form and to transfer it to another data controller.
Moreover, where the processing of your data is based on our legitimate interest, you also have the right to object to the processing of your data.
Finally, we inform you of your right to lodge a complaint with the relevant data protection supervisory authority, with the Spanish Data Protection Agency.
CHANGES TO THE PRIVACY POLICY
We may change the information contained in this Privacy Policy from time to time. If we do so, we will notify you by various means through the Platform, or we will notify you at your email address when the change in question is significant to your privacy, so that you can review the changes, assess them and, where appropriate, object to or unsubscribe from any service or functionality.
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