Injection of sperm in the cytoplasm using piezo, higher fertilization rate than conventional methods
Nov 28, 2025
The research team led by Professor Ryu Hye-jin and Professor Lee Kyung-eun of the Infertility Medical Laboratory at Ilsan Cha Hospital (Director Song Jae-man) and the research team (Research team led by Lim Cheon-gyu, Director Choi Won-yoon) published the results of a study that showed that the 'Intracellular Sperm Injection Using Piezo'(PIEZO-ICSI)' has a higher fertilization rate than the conventional procedure method of Intracellular Sperm Injection (.
The research team conducted a clinical comparative study of the two procedures on patients with the first cycle of IVF in vitro fertilization (IVF) in which infertile couples undergo in vitro baby procedures for the first time, and found that 'PIEZO-ICSI' had higher fertilization and embryonic development rates and less egg damage than 'C-ICSI' and published them in the international academic journal 'PLOS ONE'.
The study was conducted on 100 female patients under the age of 37 who were diagnosed with dysmorphia (male infertility) as their spouse had a normal sperm ratio of less than 1% in the sperm morphology test. One of the most reliable study designs, the patient-level randomized controlled trial (Patient-level RCT), was conducted by comparing the results of PIEZO-ICSI (50 patients) and C-ICSI (50 patients) procedures on two randomly assigned patient groups, respectively. As a result, the normal fertilization rate of the PIEZO-ICSI patient group was 78.0%, higher than that of the C-ICSI group, and the egg denaturation rate was 3.2%, lower than that of the C-ICSI group, which was 6.3%. In addition, the blastocyst formation rate on the 5th day was 50.3% in the PIEZO-ICSI group, higher than 43.9% in the C-ICSI group, and the clinical pregnancy rate was also 66.7%, higher than 64.3% in the C-ICSI group.
PIEZO-ICSI, introduced in clinical practice for the first time in Korea by Ilsan Cha Hospital in 2020, uses vibrations from piezo devices to gently penetrate the egg membrane and directly inject sperm, while C-ICSI injects sperm directly by piercing the egg membrane with a fine glass needle and inhaling part of the egg's cytoplasm.
Choi Won-yoon, head of the Institute of Infertility Medicine, said, "PIEZO-ICSI can be a positive alternative if C-ICSI procedures are repeatedly unsuccessful or the quality of the embryo is poor and the blastocyst embryo is not produced due to poor sperm quality, patients with poor egg condition or low number due to poor ovarian quality, and patients who need fertilization and fertilization of immature eggs after thawing frozen eggs."
Song Jae-man, head of Ilsan Cha Hospital, explained, "NANDLESS is a task directly related to the national low birth rate crisis beyond individual issues. This achievement is a fruit of efforts to contribute to the recovery of the fertility rate by introducing constant research and innovative procedures."
The study was published in the international journal "PLOS ONE" under the title "Comparison of clinical outcomes of conventional microfertilization methods and piezo microfertilization methods in the first in vitro fertilization cycle (ICSI) and PIEZO-ICSI in women undergoing the first cycle of in-vitro fertilization)".
Ilsan Cha Hospital Infertility Center applied PIEZO-ICSI for the first time in Korea in 2020, and operates world-class fertility assisted reproductive technologies such as Time-lapse monitoring, pre-implantation genetic testing (PGT), and egg and embryo freeze-preservation (Vitrification), which combine the development process in real time without taking out the embryo and then combine it with AI technology to help select optimal embryos.
In addition, it has established the nation's best research infrastructure that encompasses basic and clinical practice, such as research on embryonic development mechanisms, optimization of implantation environment, and development of customized embryo selection algorithms, centering on the infertility medical laboratory, and recently opened a CAPA-IVM clinic that cultivates immature eggs in vitro without inducing hyperovulation, increasing pregnancy and fertility rates.
The research team conducted a clinical comparative study of the two procedures on patients with the first cycle of IVF in vitro fertilization (IVF) in which infertile couples undergo in vitro baby procedures for the first time, and found that 'PIEZO-ICSI' had higher fertilization and embryonic development rates and less egg damage than 'C-ICSI' and published them in the international academic journal 'PLOS ONE'.
The study was conducted on 100 female patients under the age of 37 who were diagnosed with dysmorphia (male infertility) as their spouse had a normal sperm ratio of less than 1% in the sperm morphology test. One of the most reliable study designs, the patient-level randomized controlled trial (Patient-level RCT), was conducted by comparing the results of PIEZO-ICSI (50 patients) and C-ICSI (50 patients) procedures on two randomly assigned patient groups, respectively. As a result, the normal fertilization rate of the PIEZO-ICSI patient group was 78.0%, higher than that of the C-ICSI group, and the egg denaturation rate was 3.2%, lower than that of the C-ICSI group, which was 6.3%. In addition, the blastocyst formation rate on the 5th day was 50.3% in the PIEZO-ICSI group, higher than 43.9% in the C-ICSI group, and the clinical pregnancy rate was also 66.7%, higher than 64.3% in the C-ICSI group.
PIEZO-ICSI, introduced in clinical practice for the first time in Korea by Ilsan Cha Hospital in 2020, uses vibrations from piezo devices to gently penetrate the egg membrane and directly inject sperm, while C-ICSI injects sperm directly by piercing the egg membrane with a fine glass needle and inhaling part of the egg's cytoplasm.
Choi Won-yoon, head of the Institute of Infertility Medicine, said, "PIEZO-ICSI can be a positive alternative if C-ICSI procedures are repeatedly unsuccessful or the quality of the embryo is poor and the blastocyst embryo is not produced due to poor sperm quality, patients with poor egg condition or low number due to poor ovarian quality, and patients who need fertilization and fertilization of immature eggs after thawing frozen eggs."
Song Jae-man, head of Ilsan Cha Hospital, explained, "NANDLESS is a task directly related to the national low birth rate crisis beyond individual issues. This achievement is a fruit of efforts to contribute to the recovery of the fertility rate by introducing constant research and innovative procedures."
The study was published in the international journal "PLOS ONE" under the title "Comparison of clinical outcomes of conventional microfertilization methods and piezo microfertilization methods in the first in vitro fertilization cycle (ICSI) and PIEZO-ICSI in women undergoing the first cycle of in-vitro fertilization)".
Ilsan Cha Hospital Infertility Center applied PIEZO-ICSI for the first time in Korea in 2020, and operates world-class fertility assisted reproductive technologies such as Time-lapse monitoring, pre-implantation genetic testing (PGT), and egg and embryo freeze-preservation (Vitrification), which combine the development process in real time without taking out the embryo and then combine it with AI technology to help select optimal embryos.
In addition, it has established the nation's best research infrastructure that encompasses basic and clinical practice, such as research on embryonic development mechanisms, optimization of implantation environment, and development of customized embryo selection algorithms, centering on the infertility medical laboratory, and recently opened a CAPA-IVM clinic that cultivates immature eggs in vitro without inducing hyperovulation, increasing pregnancy and fertility rates.
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This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
