Approximately twenty percent of couples worldwide experience fertility problems (Infertility in women, 2014), but with IVF available, those couples have the opportunity to become parents. Professor Robert Edwards and gynaecologist Dr Patrick Steptoe started working alongside each other in 1968, with the intention of finding a remedy to assist couples experiencing fertility problems. This essay will describe IVF, and the events leading up to its revelation, furthermore the impact it made at the time, and the ongoing influence IVF has today.
IVF is an abbreviation of in-vitro fertilisation, a process which involves fertilising eggs with sperm outside of the body. IVF involves a series of steps. These steps include, stimulating the ovaries using …show more content…
Close monitoring by a medical team was essential, therefore the women were required to be inpatients and not leave the facility at any time. During their stay they needed to provide three hourly urine samples for hormone level testing. If hormone levels indicated ovulation, regardless of the time, the women would then need to undergo a surgical procedure exactly twenty six hours later to have her eggs collected. Once the embryos were transferred back into the women’s uterus, she would then be required to crouch forward with her bottom in the air as it was believed gravity played an important role in embryo implanting. Following the first successful birth of an IVF baby, the demand for this treatment became popular. With the success rates being only twelve percent, couples were still eager to try this treatment. At the time the average income was only 6000 pounds a year, and with IVF costing 3000 pounds, the treatment was restricted to couples that could afford it. Due to negative reactions regarding IVF, and intense media fascination, many couples remained secretive about their participation in the treatment. In time, doctors from around the world came to learn about the fertility treatment, and soon set up clinics abroad. Several countries put certain laws in place about the practice of IVF treatment, some for cultural or religious reasons. In fact Costa Rica banned IVF technology altogether. Over time legislations changed and …show more content…
Over the years there has been several changes in the practice of IVF treatment. Some changes include a decrease in the number of embryos used. It was established that embryos, eggs and sperm can be frozen, and used at a later date. As a result this reduced the risk of multiple births, and also the amount of times a women must have eggs removed. Additionally the way eggs are retrieved has improved, as ultrasound imaging has replaced the use of laparoscopic surgery. Evolution in the fertility treatment has seen the success rates increase to around twenty six percent. In the meantime, scientists have been observing the interaction between embryos and the womb lining upon implantation. Research is indicating that if the embryo and womb do not engage together this may cause the IVF cycle to be unsuccessful. The scientists are hoping to obtain a better understanding, and discover a method to increase successful
IVF is an abbreviation of in-vitro fertilisation, a process which involves fertilising eggs with sperm outside of the body. IVF involves a series of steps. These steps include, stimulating the ovaries using …show more content…
Close monitoring by a medical team was essential, therefore the women were required to be inpatients and not leave the facility at any time. During their stay they needed to provide three hourly urine samples for hormone level testing. If hormone levels indicated ovulation, regardless of the time, the women would then need to undergo a surgical procedure exactly twenty six hours later to have her eggs collected. Once the embryos were transferred back into the women’s uterus, she would then be required to crouch forward with her bottom in the air as it was believed gravity played an important role in embryo implanting. Following the first successful birth of an IVF baby, the demand for this treatment became popular. With the success rates being only twelve percent, couples were still eager to try this treatment. At the time the average income was only 6000 pounds a year, and with IVF costing 3000 pounds, the treatment was restricted to couples that could afford it. Due to negative reactions regarding IVF, and intense media fascination, many couples remained secretive about their participation in the treatment. In time, doctors from around the world came to learn about the fertility treatment, and soon set up clinics abroad. Several countries put certain laws in place about the practice of IVF treatment, some for cultural or religious reasons. In fact Costa Rica banned IVF technology altogether. Over time legislations changed and …show more content…
Over the years there has been several changes in the practice of IVF treatment. Some changes include a decrease in the number of embryos used. It was established that embryos, eggs and sperm can be frozen, and used at a later date. As a result this reduced the risk of multiple births, and also the amount of times a women must have eggs removed. Additionally the way eggs are retrieved has improved, as ultrasound imaging has replaced the use of laparoscopic surgery. Evolution in the fertility treatment has seen the success rates increase to around twenty six percent. In the meantime, scientists have been observing the interaction between embryos and the womb lining upon implantation. Research is indicating that if the embryo and womb do not engage together this may cause the IVF cycle to be unsuccessful. The scientists are hoping to obtain a better understanding, and discover a method to increase successful