Piezo-ICSI is one of the intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) techniques using a piezo-actuator. This technique requires the use of a drive unit, a micropipette with a blunt-ended tip and an operation liquid. Piezo-ICSI can be applied for sperm immobilization, opening of the zona pellucida without oocyte deformation, and to semi-automatically break the oolemma membrane without the need for aspiration of cytoplasm into the injection pipette. The piezo-ICSI process is stable and easy and can contribute to standardizing the ICSI technique. In this chapter, we describe the set-up and protocol of piezo-ICSI for human oocytes.

Micromanipulation technology has evolved rapidly over the past 30 years to meet the needs of assisted reproduction practitioners. The clinical outcome of micromanipulation and microinjection procedures is highly dependent upon practitioner skills as well as the quality and reliability of the equipment used. Well engineered mechanical, hydraulic and electronic micromanipulation systems are available and can be mounted upon inverted microscopes supplied by all of the major microscope companies. These systems are complemented by a range of oil and air injectors in addition to anti-vibration tables and lasers. In future, it is possible that some micromanipulation systems will become automated using computer algorithms, enabling robotic procedures to be performed, eliminating variability in practitioner performance.