In Vitro Fertilization

Excerpt

Techniques that involve manipulation of oocytes outside the body are termed assisted reproductive technology (ART) with in vitro fertilization (IVF) as the most common form. The term ‘in vitro’ means outside a living organism as oocytes mature in vivo in the ovary and embryos develop into pregnancy in the uterus, but the oocytes are fertilized in a petri dish. Robert Edwards, Ph.D., and Patrick Steptoe, MD, reported the first live birth from IVF in July 1978 in England. This achievement would later earn Dr. Edwards the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 2010.

Since this major breakthrough in the treatment of infertility, the field of reproductive endocrinology/infertility (REI) has progressed rapidly, and IVF now accounts for 1.6% and 4.5% of all live births in the United States and Europe, respectively. Initially developed as a way to bypass irreparable tubal disease, IVF is now widely applied for the treatment of infertility due to a variety of causes, including endometriosis, male factor, and unexplained infertility. Women who cannot use their own oocytes due to primary ovarian insufficiency (POI) or age-related decline in oocyte number can now become successfully pregnant utilizing donor oocyte IVF.