IVF Cost

Two days after my letter requesting information on the IVF cost, IVF success rates and IVF procedure at the KinderWunsch Klinik in Austria I received a great response from Rita Verdugo at the clinic. She has answered my questions directly and provided an additional letter (which I assume is standard) that I have also shown at the bottom of this posting. The clinic clearly does a large number of IVF treatments per year, however I got the impression from the response that every patient is treated very much as an individual. Their website can be found here and their email address is office@BABY4you.at. This will be another one for my shortlist!

I have added the US$ prices in red.

thank you very much for your inquiry. My name is Rita Verdugo and I am an assistant in the KinderWunschKlinik, in Thalheim bei Wels, Upper Austria.

Sorry that it took a few days to answer you back. And you don’t have to apologise for the long question list; we are used to answering them! J

I’ll go straight to your questions:

1 – WHAT IS THE CURRENT SUCCESS RATE FOR YOUR CLINIC? (PREFERABLY BY AGE AS I KNOW THAT THE SUCCESS RATE WILL BE MUCH LOWER FOR SOMEBODY OF MY AGE) – I can only tell you that we currently have a pregnancy rate of about 45% at first attempt. Most of our patients, though, are between 30 and 38 years old. Unfortunately, we don’t have any rate for patients of your age, altough many are indeed your age.

2 – HOW MANY CYCLES DO YOU PERFORM PER YEAR AT THE CLINIC? – We will perform in 2008 around 1000 follicle punctures; this means around 1000 IVF/ICSI treatments.

3 – WHAT IS THE MAXIMUM AGE THAT YOU TREAT? There’s no maximum age; of course, each woman is a case and it is first of all important for us to know: does the woman still have a regular menstruation period? How does her hormone status presently look like? Is the man’s sperm okay for an IVF treatment?

4 – ARE THERE ANY FERTILITY CONDITIONS THAT YOU WILL NOT TREAT? – We are a serious clinic and we only treat couples who still have the chance to fall pregnant and hopefully fullfil their dream of an own child. If the woman’s hormone status is hopeless, then we do not treat her, because there would be no sense in that. There is, though, the possibility of egg cell donation, which in Austria is legally not allowed. There is a clinic in Spain (country which allows egg cell donation) – www.institutobernabeu.com – who can help patients whose egg production is no longer working. In Austria it is also not allowed to treat couples from the same sex (homosexual couples) or single women.

5 – WHAT IS YOUR EMBRYO TRANSFER POLICY? HOW MANY EMBRYOS WILL YOU REPLACE AT ONE TIME? – This is a decision that has to be made between doctor and couple. Usually, though, we transfer 2 Embryos back, due to the fact that a multiple pregnancy could outcome from a transfer of 3 or more embryos, and thus cause health problems to mother and children – malformations, miscarriages, … our goal is one healthy child.

6 – WHAT IS THE BASIC COST OF THE IVF TREATMENT? – an IVF treatment costs in our clinic Euro 2.200,00 (approx. US$2980) (+ 10% VAT), no medication included. Medication can go from Euro 1.500,00 up to Euro 2.200,00 (approx. US$2035 – US$2980).

7 – WHAT ADDITIONAL COSTS WOULD / COULD BE INCURRED? – flight costs and hotel costs for foreign patients. And also other additional measures, such as anaesthesia during follicle puncture (Euro 116,36 (approx. US$157.70)+ 10% VAT) and other measures that could be applied in order to increase the chances for the patient to get pregnant. These measures though, should be discussed with the doctor and do not necessarily have to be performed.

8 – WHAT HAPPENS TO THE COSTS IF THE CYCLE HAS TO BE ABANDONED? – one of the following situations can happen: the ovaries don’t react to hormonal stimulation; after the follicle puncture, there are no eggs to be fertilised; the retrieved eggs don’t fertilise. In this case, only a percentage of the total costs will be charged (Unfortunately, I cannot give you the totals, since I do not have them).

9 – HOW LONG WOULD I NEED TO BE IN AUSTRIA FOR? – Patients from abroad usually make their stimulation phase at home and then fly/drive to Austria for the follicle puncture and embryo transfer. This means a 6-8 day stay in Austria. Sone, though, prefer to stay for the whole treatment (about 20 days).

10 – WHO DEALS WITH THE LOGISTICS OF FLIGHTS AND ACCOMMODATION? – Patients make their own arrangements regarding flights and accommodation. We can, though, provide you with a list of hotel’s suggestions in the area.

11 – HOW IS THE PRE-TREATMENT CARRIED OUT? – if you mean preparation for the treatment, there should be updated medical reports (blood, gynaecological reports, spermiograms) available and in our possession before the patient starts her stimulation.

12 – HOW DO I GET MEDICATION? – the prescriptions are given to you by us; the medication can be bought either in your own country, or through a pharmacy in France with which we have been successfully working for the past couple of years. The medicines are sent per DHL directly to the patient’s address.

13 – HOW WILL I BE MONITORED? – we need, during the stimulation phase, 2 ultrasound checks that have to be made on the 6^th and 9^th cycle days. If the patient cannot come to our clinic (as I told you before, some spend the whole treatment time in Austria), then it should be arranged by the patient that she goes to a gynaecolgist of her own trust for these monitorings. The results are sent to us on the same day, discussed with a doctor here and then per elephone with the patient also on the same day.

14 – HOW WILL I KNOW THAT I AM NOT BEING UNDER / OVER STIMULATED? – through these 2 ultrasound checks, it is possible to know how the ovaries are reacting to stimulation. The patient usually feels a slight discomfort in the abdominal area, and the whole area volume usually gets bigger if an over stimulation is starting.

15 – IF I HAVE A PROBLEM WHILST IN THE UK WHO WOULD I GO TO? – We are reachable per telephone around the clock, so the patients usually call us before they take any decisions. Our hospitals are available should one of our patients need an urgent examination at late hours; I’m sure English hospitals would be also available around the clock for you should you need any urgent examination.

16 – IS THE CLINIC REGISTERED WITH ANY REGULATORY BODY? – The KinderWunschKlinik is TÜV certified according to EN ISO 9001:2000 since 2003 (please see: http://www.baby4you.at/en/info/press/TUV-Technical-Inspection-Authority-Certification.html).

I hope I was able to answer all your questions.

I’m also enclosing a letter containing some more general information on an IVF treatment in our clinic.

Please don’t hesitate to contact me again, should you need any extra clarification or if you are interested in coming to us.

I wish you all the best!

With kind regards

Rita Verdugo

Medical Assistant

KinderWunschKlinik

Dr. Loimer GmbH

Traunufer Arkade 1

A-4600 Thalheim bei Wels

A U S T R I A

T +43 72 42 22 44 66

M +43 699 15 22 44 66

F +43 72 42 22 44 67

rita.verdugo@kinderwunschklinik.at

www.kinderwunschklinik.at

 

Here is the letter that was also attached to this reply:

Your inquiry concerning a treatment
in the KinderWunschKlinik Wels – AUSTRIA

Hello,
Thank you very much for your inquiry. My name is Rita Verdugo and I am the assistant of
our medical director Dr. Leonhard Loimer.

Below some information about the treatment in our clinic in Austria:
1. In Austria it is legally allowed to transfer embryos on day 5 after puncture. That means
the embryos have reached the phase of blastocysts. This opportunity makes it possible
to control the embryo’s development much better and to transfer those who have the
best chance to implant in the uterus.
2. In Austria all punctured oocytes can be fertilized. The best embryos will then be
transferred. If there are good-quality embryos left, they can be frozen and stored in
liquid nitrogen for further treatments.
3. The costs for an IVF treatment amount to Euro 2.200,–, if you need the ICSI method (in
case of poor sperm quality) the costs run up to Euro 2.650,– (prices excluding 10%
VAT).
The costs for medication are separate and are approx. Euro 1.500,- up to Euro 2.200,-
(prices excluding 10% VAT). An exact calculation is possible as soon as the doctor
knows which hormonal treatment you need.
We suggest that you contact your insurance to see if you can get any financial support.
Of course we will help you with any information you need!
4. If you plan a treatment in our clinic first of all we need the following medical details from
both you and your partner:
a. Blood: woman: – HIV (not older than 3 months)
– Hepatitis B and C (not older than 3 months)
– Syphilis TPHA test
– Rubella titre
– Hormones: FSH, LH, E2, progesterone, TSH, T3, T4,
prolactin (if possible, please collect blood between day
1 and 4 of bleeding)
man: – HIV (not older than 3 months)
– Hepatitis B and C (not older than 3 months)
– Syphilis TPHA test
We strongly recommend you to bring these medical reports from your own home
country, as the diagnosis may be more expensive in Austria and your insurance will not
cover the costs.
b. Marriage certificate
c. If you are not married
W will send you to a notary´s office here in Austria. Please contact us!
d. Spermiogram:
So we can figure out the quality quantity, morphology and motility of sperm.
e. Gynaecological reports: – ultrasound of uterus and ovaries
– updated PAP smear
– bacterial culture
– details of surgical operations
f. If possible reports from previous IVF-treatments in other clinics
The duration of your treatment in the KinderWunschKlinik:
For us it is very important to be best informed about you. If you have a gynaecologist in
your country who is interested in cooperating with us, she or he could do the necessary
ultrasounds for follicle-monitoring, during stimulation.
We could do the information exchange per email, fax or phone.
You should arrive to Austria prior to the 2nd ultrasound (usually on cycle day 9), so that
one of our doctors can assess the result of stimulation and schedule the optimal date for
the puncture, according to the size of your follicles.
The puncture of the oocytes (approx. on the 13th cycle day) is in our clinic in Wels; three to
five days later you have to come back for your embryo transfer).
Two weeks after the embryo transfer takes place, you will carry out a pregnancy test –
hopefully you’re pregnant. The pregnancy test can be done in your home country and we
recommend a blood control of the ßHCG level.
We would like to inform you that our pregnancy rate is very good, with approx. 50%
success at first attempt.
If you wish, I would be at any time available to help you finding suitable accommodation
here in Wels or its surroundings. Especially during the summer months we can
recommend the holiday region Attersee in the beautiful landscape of the Upper Austrian
Salzkammergut (www.attersee.at).
Also the European Capital of Culture 2009 Linz or the beautiful historic Mozart town
Salzburg are just 30 to 45 minutes to drive by car from Wels.
If you need any further information, please do not hesitate to contact me (mobile +43 699
15 22 44 66 or in the KinderWunschKlinik +43 72 42 22 44 66).

All the best and warm regards!
Rita Verdugo
Medical Assistant
KinderWunschKlinik Wels
rita.verdugo@kinderwunschklinik.at
www.kinderwunschklinik.at