Written By: N. Amma Twum-Baah Nadya Suleman made headlines early this year in the United States when she gave birth to octuplets (eight babies in one birth). The news, however, did not have so much to do with the fact that she had eight babies at once as much as the fact that the multiple births were induced by the process of In Vitro Fertilization, she is a single mother, and she already has 6 children. The uproar about the births was therefore justified, but also cast a renewed focus on the issue of In Vitro Fertility births for women who desperately want to experience the joys of motherhood. With the invention of scientific methods such as artificial insemination and In Vitro fertilization, stories of women who have successfully conceived and given birth to healthy babies using the In Vitro process continue to make headlines across the nation – from celebrities to normal couples. With women these days more focused on an education and their careers, the practice is pictured as a ray of hope, as it becomes much more acceptable as an option for those who wait too long till the clock stops ticking - usually women in their mid to early forties. But is this really the case or are we simply living in a fool’s paradise? Before we answer that question: What is In Vitro Fertilization? In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) involves the process of combining eggs and sperm outside a woman’s body in a laboratory. The embryos are allowed to form, after which, they are then placed in the woman’s uterus. Babies produced through the process of IVF are usually referred to as test tube babies. How the Process Works: The process starts by injecting the woman with hormones to produce multiple eggs each month instead of one. The eggs are then allowed to develop. The woman is injected with medication to help ripen the eggs to move along the process to a stage where the eggs are ready for retrieval. After a doctor has determined that the eggs are at the right stage of development, they are retrieved. The retrieval process is said to be quite painful and most women are put under anesthesia prior to undergoing the process. The eggs, after they have been retrieved, are mixed in the laboratory with sperm donated by the woman’s partner. The sperm must be donated that same day for the process to be successful. The embryos are then left to fertilize in the lab while the couple waits a number of days to be called back for implantation. Once the embryos are ready, they are implanted into the woman’s uterus. To increase a woman’s chances of conceiving, three or four embryos may be implanted at once which could result in a multiple pregnancy -as in the case of Nadya who had several embryos implanted at once. Embryos that are left over from the procedure are usually frozen for later use or, with the permission of the couple, may be donated to a couple in need of them, or destroyed. According to the American Society of Reproductive Medicine, an IVF procedure could cost a couple about $12,400. Artificial Insemination (IA) vs. In Vitro Fertilization (IVF): There is (and always will be) an ongoing ethical debate on the concept of test tube babies, yet for many women dying to go through the experience of child birth, this scientific invention is seen as the answer to their fervent prayers. So, how is IVF different from artificial insemination? The two procedures are actually not that different from each other. With artificial insemination, the donated sperm is artificially placed in the uterus where conception takes place naturally, while with IVF the sperm and egg are mixed outside the woman’s body and the embryo is placed in the uterus only after the embryo has formed. The Down-Side: Although IVF procedures offer a glimmer of hope to thousands of women who have unsuccessfully tried to conceive the natural way, it does not offer hope to all women; and women are cautioned to still pay attention to the ticking of their biological clocks. According to a recent study of more than 6,000 women who underwent the IVF procedure, infertile women younger than 35 had better chances of being successful than infertile women over 40. Alan S. Penzias of the Harvard Medical School, who led the study published in the New England Journal of Medicine said, “Even as effective as IVF is, it can’t reverse the effects of aging. We just cannot reverse the biological clock.” About the Author The article above was researched and written by AG Editor N. Amma Twum-Baah with the assistance and review of Dr. Vivian Owusu. Dr. Owusu is a General Medical Practitioner and has been practicing medicine for over 15 years. She joined the Afrikan Goddess team in October and has been lending her medical expertise, advice and reviews since then. She is also a wife and mother of four. |
