When a couple chooses to seek pregnancy in the most natural way, and as long as all the basic fertility studies indicate that there is no significant alteration in the male or female factor, we can recommend scheduled sexual intercourse in order to optimise the chances of achieving pregnancy.
Programmed intercourse can be carried out in two ways: either in a natural cycle, monitoring by ultrasound and analyses (or by ovulation test) when the woman will ovulate, or in a stimulated cycle, carrying out a gentle induction of ovulation with medication that will make the ovulatory follicle grow and, at the same time, prepare the endometrium.
We obtain better results when we perform ovulation induction, as we ensure that the ovaries are going to function correctly and we can programme the moment to have sexual intercourse more accurately, thus increasing the probabilities of success. When we perform ovulation induction, the woman begins treatment between the 2nd-4th day of the cycle, and we start ultrasound scans around the 6th-7th day of the cycle.
In a natural cycle with ultrasound checks, the patient should be seen from the 8th-10th day of her cycle (in women with 28-30 day cycles) for ultrasound scans every 2-3 days to monitor the growth of the follicle that is going to ovulate.
Dr. Chavez has made several publications, courses and presentations at conferences on fertility, assisted reproduction, gynecology, both nationally and at European level. Since the opening of Ovoclinic Madrid, she is the medical director and gynecologist of the clinic.
