What to record for each IVF cycle, so you can compare them side by side
After two or three cycles, details blur. A short, consistent record for each one lets you, and your doctor, see them side by side.
“How did this cycle compare to the last one?” is one of the most common questions in IVF, and one of the hardest to answer from memory. The details live in different reports, written at different times, sometimes at different clinics. A short record kept the same way for every cycle makes the comparison easy.
This template is about record-keeping, not treatment. What gets tested and what it means is for your clinic to decide and explain.
The template
Copy the fields below into a note or spreadsheet, one column per cycle. Fill them in from your reports, using the clinic’s own wording and units.
| Field | What to write down |
|---|---|
| Cycle | Number, clinic, start date |
| Protocol | The name your clinic uses for it |
| Medications | Each medication, dose and the days taken |
| Baseline | Day and results of the first scan and bloodwork, with each lab’s range |
| Monitoring | Each visit: date, follicle count and sizes, hormone results with ranges |
| Trigger | Date, time and medication |
| Retrieval | Date, eggs retrieved, eggs mature |
| Fertilization | Method and number fertilized, as the embryology report states |
| Embryos | Development by day and grades as written by the lab; number frozen |
| Genetic testing | If done: number tested and results as reported |
| Transfer | Date, fresh or frozen, number transferred |
| Outcome | Pregnancy test dates and results |
| Notes | Anything your doctor changed or recommended for next time |
Tips that make it work
- Copy the unit and range with every result. Labs report some hormones in different units, and each lab prints its own reference range. Without them, numbers from two clinics aren’t comparable.
- Use the report’s words. Embryo grades and protocol names vary between clinics. Write them exactly as printed rather than translating them.
- Note where each value came from. A file name or page number next to each entry lets you, or a new doctor, check the source.
- Write down the plan for next time. The “what we’ll change” from your follow-up consult is easy to forget and useful later.
Comparing cycles
With one column per cycle, differences show up at a glance: a different protocol, a different medication dose, a different number of mature eggs. Bring the table to your follow-up consult and ask your doctor to walk through it with you. They are the right person to explain what the differences mean for you.
Where Backstory fits
Backstory, coming soon to iPhone and Android, builds this view from your reports: it reads each cycle’s tests and results, lines up your cycles side by side, and shows every result against the range of the lab that produced it, linked to the original page. Getting your records together first? Start with how to organize IVF records from more than one clinic.
This article is about organizing records. It isn’t medical advice. Talk to your doctor or clinic about your results and treatment.