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MEDICAL PROCEDURES

See Also: Fertility medication



Most fertility medication are agents that stimulate the development of follicles in the ovary. Examples are gonadotropins and gonadotropin releasing hormone.


MANUAL PROCEDURES

To this category counts all forms of ART techniques that uses more substantial and forceful interventions than giving medication. In Vitro Fertilisation (IVF) and expansions of it (e.g. OCR, AZH, ICSI, ZIFT) are the most prevalent. However, there are also other manual ART, not necessarily dependent on IVF (e.g. PGD, GIFT, SSR).


In vitro fertilisation

See Also: In vitro fertilisation


In vitro fertilisation (IVF) is the technique of letting Fertilisation of the male and female Gametes (sperm and egg) occure outside the female body.


Expansions of IVF

The following are techniques that are involved in or requires In Vitro Fertilisation . On the other hand, in vitro fertilization doesn't necessarily involve each technique.


Transvaginal Ovum Retrieval (OCR)

See Also: Transvaginal Ovum Retrieval


This is the process whereby a small needle is inserted through the back of the vagina and guided via ultrasound into the ovarian follicles to collect the fluid that contains the eggs.


Assisted zona hatching (AZH)

See Also: Assisted zona hatching


Assisted zona hatching is performed shortly before the embryo is transferred to the uterus. A small opening is made in the outer layer surrounding the egg in order to help the embryo hatch out and aid in the implantation process of the growing embryo.


Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI)


See Also: Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection


Intracytoplasmic sperm injection is beneficial in the case of male factor infertility where sperm counts are very low or failed fertilization occurred with previous IVF attempt(s). The ICSI procedure involves a single sperm carefully injected into the center of an egg using a microneedle.


Autologous Endometrial Coculture

See Also: Autologous Endometrial Coculture


Autologous endometrial coculture is a possible treatment for patients who have failed previous IVF attempts or who have poor embryo quality. The patient’s fertilized eggs are placed on top of a layer of cells from the patient’s own uterine lining, creating a more natural environment for embryo development.


Zygote intrafallopian transfer (ZIFT)

See Also: Zygote intrafallopian transfer


In zygote intrafallopian transfer egg cells are removed from the woman's ovaries and fertilized in the laboratory; the resulting zygote is then placed into the fallopian tube.


Egg Donor

See Also: Egg Donor


Egg donors are resources for women with no eggs due to surgery, chemotherapy, or genetic causes; or with poor egg quality, previously unsuccessful IVF cycles or advanced maternal age. In the egg donor process, eggs are retrieved from a donor’s ovaries, fertilized in the laboratory with the sperm from the recipient’s partner, and the resulting healthy embryos are returned to the recipient’s uterus.


Gestational Carrier

See Also: Gestational Carrier


A gestational carrier an option when a patient’s medical condition prevents safe pregnancy or when a patient has ovaries but no uterus due to congenital absence or previous surgical removal.


Cryopreservation

See Also: Cryopreservation


Eggs, sperm and reproductive tissue can be preserved for later IVF.


Complementary or alternative medicine

See Also: In vitro fertilisation#Complementary or alternative medicine


Acupuncture, complementary medicines and hypnosis has shown positive with IVF in occasional studies, but no ones without subsequent criticism. There is no definitive positive effect of any complementary or alternative medicine on IVF.


Others

The following Assisted Reproduction techniques don't necessarily involve IVF.


Gamete intrafallopian transfer (GIFT)

See Also: Gamete intrafallopian transfer


In gamete intrafallopian transfer a mixture of sperm and eggs is placed directly into a woman’s fallopian tubes using laparoscopy following a transvaginal ovum retrieval.


Preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD)

See Also: Preimplantation genetic diagnosis


PGD involves the use of Fluorescent In Situ Hybridization (FISH) or Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) DNA amplification to help identify genetically abnormal embryos and improve healthy outcomes.


Artificial insemination

See Also: Artificial insemination


Artificial insemination (AI) is when sperm is placed into a female's uterus (intrauterine) or cervix (intracervical) using artificial means rather than by natural copulation.


=Therapeutic Donor Insemination

See Also: Artificial insemination#donor variations


Therapeutic donor is an expansion of artificial insemination. It is also called artificial insemination by donor and is used in situations where the woman doesn't have a partner with functional sperm. Instead, a Sperm Donor supplies the sperm.


Surgical sperm retrieval (SSR)

The reproductive urologist may obtain sperm from the vas deferens, epididymis or directly from the testis in a short outpatient procedure. Abington Reproductive Medicine: ART (2006)


Tuboplasty

See Also: Tuboplasty


Tuboplasty is a surgery to restore potency of Obstructed Fallopian Tubes .


Frozen embryo transfer

A fertilized embryo can be cryopreserved. The latter insertion in he body is by the technique Frozen Embryo Transfer (FET).


RISKS

ART treatments are relatively new and have been around for only around three decades. About 9% of children born of ART have a major (ICSI) treatment, where a single sperm is injected directly into an egg. ICSI uses a random sperm, avoiding the natural selection process, where any sperm that can't reach the egg dies. After ICSI around 7% of children born have a severe genetic defect as opposed to less than 4% conceived spontaneously.


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