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 Pauline
Taylor BSc MNSPH HBCE
Registered Clinical Hypnotherapist,
HypnoBirthing®
Practitioner
HypnoFertility®
Therapist
Fertility Treatment Glossary
IVF or test-tube fertilisation
IVF or test-tube fertilisation is the process of collecting eggs from a
woman and fertilising them with sperm outside the body. The woman is given
drug therapy to encourage the ovaries to produce more eggs. This will
often consist of drugs designed to suppress hormones followed by another
course of drugs designed to super-stimulate the ovaries to produce eggs.
The almost menopausal state that results from the suppressants seems to
encourage the ovaries to respond more actively when the stimulants are
given. As soon as the drugs are stopped at the end of treatment, the
'menopausal' effect ceases. Once the eggs are ready, they are removed from
the woman's ovary and mixed with a fresh sample of her partner's sperm. If
fertilisation occurs, the developing egg or embryo is then placed back
into the woman's uterus. Two, or occasionally three, embryos are inserted
into the uterus, after which the woman may take progesterone to support
any possible pregnancy. Most couples then have to wait two weeks, one of
the most difficult times, before finding out whether a pregnancy is
developing. If sufficient embryos of good quality develop, there may be an
option to freeze them and replace them, after thawing, in a subsequent
cycle.
Gamete Intra-Fallopian
Transfer (GIFT)
A
variation of IVF, GIFT involves taking an egg and sperm from a couple,
mixing them together and putting them back, right away, into the fallopian
tubes. Fertilisation can then take place within the fallopian tubes, as it
would do naturally. This is the treatment's main difference to IVF.
Artificial Insemination (AI)
artificial insemination (AI) refers to a range of techniques of placing
sperm directly into either the cervix or the uterus. The procedure takes
about five minutes during which – often after a course of drug therapy to
stimulate the ovaries – the doctor places a carefully prepared semen
sample into the woman's cervix or uterus, or at the top of her vagina.
Fertilisation is then allowed to take place naturally.
Intra Cytoplasmic Sperm
Injection (ICSI)
ICSI, a relatively new procedure, involves injecting a single sperm into
the very centre of each egg, thus helping the sperm through natural
barriers it may not be able to tackle on its own.
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