Many people think test tube baby treatment and IVF treatment are different treatments for couples who are trying to get pregnant. When Fertility Treatments had started in 1975, to help common man and woman understand easily, they explained that unlike natural pregnancy where the egg and sperm fertilize inside the body (in-vivo), unlike that, in IVF the eggs and sperms are fertilized in a petri dish (in-vitro) after extracting eggs from the body in a test tube. It was easier to explain that these are Test Tube Pregnancies.
But there is no difference between Test Tube Baby and IVF. They are just two different names, the first being more a misnomer.
When is IVF or Test Tube Treatment done
There are multiple medical conditions which can demand for a medical intervention and procedural treatments, eg
- Say there is some infection or deformity with fallopian tube
- Ovaries are not making good quality or quantity eggs or not released as per the cycle dates
- Woman is suffering from endometriosis
- Conditions like PCOS
- The husband sperms are not of good quality
Different steps involved in IVF or Test Tube Baby Treatment
- Hormone therapy to make more eggs:
On day 1 of menses, the woman is given hormones like FSH and LH to make more than 1 egg in her body. With these injections the follicles grow inside the ovary.
- Egg Pick Up Surgery:
Once the follicles have come to 2 cm size, these eggs are then retrieved from the ovary through minor surgery by inserting the needle through vagina into the ovary under ultrasonography guidance. This procedure can be done under sedation but usually done under minor anesthesia.
On the same day of the woman’s egg retrieval; a fresh semen sample of the man is required for the continuation of the process.
- Fertilization:
Once the semen sample is given by the husband on the same day, that sample is used to fertilize the eggs. In IVF, the semen sample after processing and washing is mixed with the eggs in the Petri-Dish. The dish is left untouched for 2 days.
- Embryo Transfer
Usually on day 3 or day 5, the embryos that are formed are checked and then taken into a cannula or straw kind of catheter and transferred under ultrasonography guidance into the woman’s uterus. Presently upto 3 embryos can be transferred.
Test Tube Baby Treatment: Pros and Cons
As there is no difference between Test Tube Baby and IVF, the advantages and disadvantages are the same.
Some advantages where this procedure is performed
- Blocked tubes
- Male factor
- Undiagnosed infertility
- Older patients
- Low AMH or ovarian reserve
- Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS)
- Endometriosis
We at Zoi Fertility believe that not all patients are for IVF and Test Tube baby treatment. We believe a good diagnosis is the first step in fertility.
