What it means

ICSI stands for Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection. It is a method used in IVF where a single sperm is carefully injected directly into an egg to help fertilisation happen. Instead of letting the sperm find and enter the egg on its own, this process gives it a direct assist.

When it’s used

It’s used during the fertilisation step, after egg retrieval. Clinics may use ICSI when there are concerns about sperm quality, or when previous fertilisation did not happen as expected.

Why people get confused

Some people think ICSI is a completely different process from IVF. But it’s actually part of IVF. It’s just one way of helping fertilisation happen inside the lab.

Think of it this way

Instead of waiting for the sperm to reach the egg on its own, ICSI is like placing the sperm exactly where it needs to be so fertilisation has a better chance to start.

What to expect

If ICSI is used, the rest of the IVF process continues the same way. Not every egg will fertilise even with ICSI, and what happens next still depends on how the embryo develops.