IVF or In Vitro Fertilization has brought a revolution in the world of fertility treatment. It is used by the medical practitioners as a last resort to expel infertility when all other methods. The basic technique followed in IVF is that the male sperm is allowed to fertilize the ovum outside the body of a female.
How is IVF carried out?
The natural cycle of ovulation of a woman patient is observed by the attending doctors. In due course of time, the matured ovum or egg cell is removed from her ovaries or fallopian tubes and placed in a fluid filled external laboratory apparatus. The sperm is then introduced into the same apparatus and allowed to fertilize. When the process of fertilization gets completed, the fetus is inserted back into the uterus of the woman and allowed to grow and mature naturally.
When is IVF recommended?
In Vitro Fertilization is usually recommended for women who have complications in their fallopian tubes. This prevents the natural process of fertilization that generally takes place within the female body. It is also to treat male infertility where there are imperfections in sperm cells or the male patient suffers from reduced sperm count thus making it difficult for the sperm to penetrate into the ovum and fertilize it.
Time required for the process
Generally, the entire cycle of In Vitro Fertilization takes about twenty one to twenty eight days. It starts from the initial stage of ovulation to fertilization of sperm cells with the ovum outside the fallopian tubes to the last stage of re-installation of the embryo into the uterus. After this basic stage, the couple under treatment is suggested to allow a waiting period of about fifteen to twenty days before the diagnosis of pregnancy.
Failure rates
Chances of failure are there, and the recommencement of the natural menstrual cycle of the female patient instead of positive pregnancy report suggests the same. Usually, couples seeking for IVF need to go through three cycles of the same. However, it also needs to be mentioned here that while some couples give positive results right after the first cycle some others may prove unsuccessful even after the fourth cycle!
Advantages of IVF
The rising rate of success of IVF suggests that it is much advantageous in treating infertility when a number of methods fail to show any positive result. It proves successful for women who have attained their menopausal stage as surrogate mothers serve as ovum donors in such cases. It is also used in combination with Pre-implantation Genetic Diagnosis to expel the chances of supposed genital disorders that a baby may inherit from his/her parents.
Things to remember about IVF
Whether it is an IVF clinic at Gold Coast or Brisbane, couples suffering from infertility may opt for the treatment anywhere in the world. But it should be kept in mind that the chances of pregnancy and child birth become extremely low if IVF is carried out without implementing any additional techniques of fertilization. Therefore, the commonly employed additional methods include ovarian hyperstimulation, transvaginal oocyte retrieval with ultrasonography, preparation of ovum and sperm, timely collection and culture of the resultant fetus, etc.
