Institut Marquès Invited by the Imperial College of London to Present Latest Developments in Front of 700 Researchers

State-of-the-art technology to improve the results in assisted reproduction

Barcelona, Spain, March 18, 2019 -- Institut Marquès strives to continue devising advanced and amazing technology for reproductive medicine, with a focus on fertility and successful pregnancy. The Spanish Assisted Reproduction Centre has presented the results of its research at the Imperial College University of London in front of over 700 researchers.

Music, mobile technology, telemedicine and virtual reality are some of the innovations that Institut Marquès is already using in its clinics. These have generated great anticipation among the conference attendees given by its Scientific Director, Dr Àlex García- Faura.

Pioneering in studying the effects of music at the beginning of life, Institut Marquès has proven that foetuses can hear from the 16th week of pregnancy, but only if the outside sounds come directly from their mother’s vagina. For this purpose, the scientific team, led by Dr. Marisa López-Teijón, has created the intravaginal speaker Babypod, already used by thousands of women. This research was awarded the Ig Nobel Prize at the University of Harvard.

Institut Marquès’ scientific research about the importance of music at the beginning of life was awarded with the Ig Nobel Obstetrics Prize at the University of Harvard. The research has been presented to the scientific community in England this week: “Thanks to the creation of a vaginal loudspeaker, Babypod, we have shown that foetuses can hear from week 16th onwards, when they measure 11 centimetres, only if the sound reaches them directly from the vagina. Foetuses can barely hear the noise from outside. Therefore, we can say that the myth of talking to babies through pregnant women's bellies is something of the past”, explained Dr García- Faura at the Imperial College.

Music is always present at the laboratories in Institut Marquès, even with live concerts. Artists, such as Sharon Corr, have performed for the embryos in their centres, where all incubators have music inside them. According to the research carried out in the laboratories of Institut Marquès, music improves the fertilisation rates of IVF treatments by 5%.

The mobile phone: a commitment to transparency

Mobile phones have turned into another technological ally in order to improve the results in assisted reproduction. The app Embryomobile, developed by Institut Marquès, allows parents to have a real time follow-up with their embryos while they are in the incubator from any location. Institut Marquès is the only centre where patients can really see how their embryos are doing.

Telemedicine is the medicine of the future and this was another of the topics discussed at the Imperial College. In this area, Institut Marquès has developed and patented its own technique of telemedicine, so that patients can cryopreserve their sperm anywhere in the world and send it to the clinic, without having to travel. This is a convenient solution for males who are away from home, who have difficulties travelling to the clinic to undergo fertility treatment with their partner, or simply for privacy reasons.

Erotic visual stimulation improves the sperm quality

Institut Marquès researchers have also presented the results of a study that links semen quality with erotic visual stimulation through virtual reality. Because of this, the sample delivery rooms at Institut Marquès have an evocative design and include erotic devices to improve sexual excitement, such as virtual reality glasses.

The erotic visual stimulation ensures a more complete semen sample, as Dr Marisa López- Teijón, General Director of Institute Marquès, points out: "The degree of sexual arousal during masturbation directly affects semen quality. The quantity, quality, volume of the ejaculate and the level of orgasm depend on the excitement. I mean, the sample is more complete the higher the intensity and time of the previous arousal are.”