An Explanation Of The IVF Procedure

In vitro fertilization (IVF) is a process of assisted reproduction that offers couples who are infertile a chance to have a baby who is biologically related to them. Over 250,000 babies have been brought into the world using the IVF procedure and it is now recognized worldwide as an established treatment for infertility.

With IVF, a man's sperm and the woman's egg are brought together in a laboratory dish, where fertilization occurs. The resulting embryo is then put into the uterus (womb) of the woman to develop naturally. Typically, 2-4 embryos are put in the woman's uterus each time. Each attempt is referred to as a cycle, with the cost of each cycle being approximately ten thousands dollars.

The full procedure is as follows:

The woman may be administered hormones to stimulate her ovaries to create a number (5+) eggs. A surgeon will then insert a needle through the vagina into the woman's ovary to remove the eggs. General anesthesia is not required when the surgeon does this, but the woman may be administered a mild sedative. Whilst that is taking place, the man provides a semen sample. He will be asked not to have sexual intercourse for a few days before the eggs are retrieved from his partner. The next step is for the sperm to be separated from the semen, which is done through a laboratory procedure.

Following this, the sperm are combined in a laboratory dish with the eggs. Around 20 hours after this fertilization procedure, it is possible to determine if the egg or eggs have been fertilized and if embryos have grown as a result. Should this have happened, they are incubated and observed for the next 2-5 days. The doctor then transfers the embryos into the woman's uterus through the cervix with a catheter (a long slender tube). The woman is then given certain hormones for the following 2 weeks. If the implantation works (the egg or eggs attach to the uterine wall and grow), a pregnancy test will give a positive result.

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