Extracorporeal insemination of a woman

Women, who 30-40 years ago would be doomed to childlessness, today, thanks to the development of assisted reproductive technologies, become mothers of healthy babies.

In the modern world, IVF - artificial insemination is one of the most common ways to overcome infertility. What is the essence of this procedure? We all know, at least in general terms, what conception under natural conditions is. The sperm that reaches the ovum merge with it, forming a zygote - the future fetal egg. Sometimes, due to a number of reasons related to the health of a woman or her partner, a natural meeting of their sex cells is impossible. For example, if the fallopian tube is obstructed or the spermogram results are poor. In this case, the only way out is the fertilization of the woman in artificial conditions, that is, outside the body of the future mother. When carrying out IVF an egg is extracted, which is fertilized by the partner's or donor's sperm in a test tube. Further, the embryo is inserted into the uterus for gestation.

Stages of IVF

Artificial insemination of a woman with the help of this technology is carried out for 15-30 days. The procedure takes place in several consecutive stages:

1. First, a woman is mandatory to undergo a test, during which the level of hormones is determined. Further, experts artificially activate the process of egg maturation - with the help of hormone therapy, "superovulation" is stimulated. Changes occurring in the body are monitored using ultrasound monitoring.
2. After the maturation of the follicles, 10-30 egg cells are removed from them. Extraction occurs by the method of transvaginal aspiration. A special needle pierces the vaginal wall and reaches the oocytes. The procedure is performed under local or general anesthesia.
3. Seized oocytes are checked in the laboratory: the most healthy cells are selected. The partner's sperm is also prepared for fertilization. Inactive sex cells of a man and a woman are removed.
4. Further fertilization of a woman with IVF takes place. Processed sperm and prepared eggs are incubated in a specific medium. To increase the chances of conception, the sperm is placed directly into the egg by injection using an ionic method.
5. The embryo (after some stay in the cultural environment) is transplanted into the woman's womb. To increase the chances of survival and fetal bearing, usually two to four embryos are implanted.

Pregnancy and delivery after the IVF procedure go without any special features. According to statistics, in-vitro fertilization of a woman is effective in 30-40% of cases. Usually, pregnancy begins with 3-5 attempts. In each specific case, the possibility of IVF should be discussed with the embryologist. As practice shows, the children born from the end of the 70s of the twentieth century are no different from those conceived in a natural way.