ASSISTED REPRODUCTIVE TECHNIQUES

“Welcome momma”, Amina lowered her knee to greet her mother-in-law culturally. With an angry look on her face, the elderly woman barged into the house without answering, and instantly began inspecting the sitting room as if looking for a fault. “Where is my son?” She asked, turning around to face Amina, a look of disgust on her face. “Momma, at least have a seat first and let me offer you something to drink”, Amina replied, garnering every ounce of strength left in her to hold herself from cracking under the hurt of the woman’s attitude towards her. 

Momma had once loved her. The first day Segun had brought her to meet his mother, the woman had welcomed her with so much love and warmth. Amina’s mother in law had acted like a mother to her, until the second year of their marriage came, with no child in view. The once loving woman suddenly turned into a thorn in Amina’s flesh, paying sudden visits with no prior notice, to harshly demanding for grandchildren, treating Amina meanly whenever she had the chance, and calling her all kinds of harsh names to imply that Amina was a barren woman.

Amina and her husband Segun had visited a fertility clinic and ran several tests which showed that Segun had low sperm count. The way things were turning out, they learnt they may need to undergo some special procedures which the doctors called “IVF”, for them to be able to have children.

Several times, since then, Amina had almost blurted to her mother-in-law that her son, Segun was in fact the reason why they had no children yet, but she always held herself back because she knew it would do no good.

WHAT ARE ASSISTED REPRODUCTIVE TECHNIQUES?

Assisted reproductive technology/techniques (ART) are medical procedures used mainly to solve the problem of infertility. It refers to all fertility treatments in which both eggs and embryos are handled. With ART, the process of sexual intercourse is bypassed and fertilization of the oocytes occurs in the laboratory environment

In general, ART procedures involve surgically removing eggs from a woman’s ovaries, combining them with sperm in the laboratory, and returning them to the woman’s body or donating them to another woman. 

When used to treat infertility, it may also be referred to as fertility treatment. Some forms of ART may be used even on fertile couples, for special purposes.

TYPES OF ASSISTED REPRODUCTIVE TECHNOLOGY

There are several types of ART procedures. Some of the most common ones include:

1. In vitro fertilization (IVF): In vitro fertilization (IVF) is the joining of a woman’s egg and a man’s sperm in a laboratory dish. In vitro means outside the body. Fertilization means the sperm has attached to and entered the egg. After this, there is a transfer of the product of fertilization (the embryo) to the womb of the mother. It is the most effective and most common form of ART. It has helped many couples conceive successfully. 

2. Intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI): Is often used for couples with male factor infertility. It is a test-tube fertilization procedure in which a sperm is injected directly into an egg to achieve fertilization.

ICSI does not require large numbers of sperm cells or good sperm quality to achieve fertilization of an oocyte. For this reason, ICSI is useful in providing a way for men with severe infertility caused by a lack of sperm production or obstruction of the outflow of sperms, to father a biological child.

3. Zygote intrafallopian transfer (ZIFT) or tubal embryo transfer: This is similar to IVF. It is an infertility treatment used when a blockage in the fallopian tubes prevents the normal binding of sperm to the egg. Egg cells are removed from a woman’s ovaries and fertilized outside the body. Then the very young embryo (called a zygote) is transferred to the fallopian tube of the mother.

4. Gamete intrafallopian transfer (GIFT): Is a tool of assisted reproductive technology against infertility. Eggs are removed from a woman’s ovaries, and placed in one of the Fallopian tubes, along with the man’s sperm. It involves transferring both the eggs and sperms (gametes) into the woman’s fallopian tube. Fertilization occurs in the woman’s body.

5. Donor parenting: Assisted reproductive procedures sometimes involve the use of donor eggs (eggs from another woman), donor sperm, or previously frozen embryos. Donor eggs are sometimes used for women who cannot produce eggs. Also, donor eggs or donor sperm are sometimes used when the woman or man has a genetic disease that can be passed on to the baby. 

6. Gestational Carrier: Women with ovaries but no womb may be able to use a gestational carrier or surrogate, which means that another woman carries the pregnancy, and then the child is given to the mother whose egg was used for the procedure. This may also be an option for women who shouldn’t become pregnant because of a serious health problem. In this case, a woman uses her own egg. It is fertilized by her partner’s sperm and the embryo is placed inside the carrier’s uterus.

ADVANTAGES

ART helps many patients who would otherwise be unable to conceive. The ultimate advantage is achieving a successful pregnancy and a healthy baby.

1. ART can make this a reality for people who would be unable to have a baby due to factors like advanced age of the female, blocked fallopian tubes, male infertility, unexplained infertility, etc. 
2. It can help single women who desire to have children. 

3. Unused embryos can be donated to research or to another couple, with the permission of the donors.

DISADVANTAGES

Artificial reproductive technology is becoming more available. However, there are some drawbacks to it. Some of these include:

1.  Early studies showed that there could be a higher risk of medical complications for both the mother and baby. Such as

a. Low birth weight 

b. Placental insufficiency

c. Chromosomal disorders

d. Preterm deliveries

e. Gestational diabetes and pre-eclampsia

f. Higher risk of childhood cancer in such children.

2. It is expensive: Fertility treatment is not cheap, and after paying for medication and blood tests, the costs can quickly mount up.
3. ART procedures may be unsuccessful. Its success is not guaranteed, and patients often have to undergo more than one cycle of treatment before they are successful.
4. Fertility treatment and ART procedures can have an emotional/psychological effect on the couples involved. 
5. Some patients may be concerned about ethical issues. The idea of selecting some embryos and potentially discarding others may not sit well with everybody. Before starting treatment, consider your own stance and what you would be comfortable with. 

If you have problems conceiving, speak with your doctor. To speak with a doctor on Flexicare health insurance plan, sign up here or sign in if you’re an existing subscriber. A doctor will guide you on the necessary tests and help you identify the actual problem. Assisted reproductive techniques could be the answer you seek.