Most people know the term ‘test tube baby’ but the correct name for this process is ‘In Vitro fertilization’. Eggs are fertilized in a laboratory dish with sperm and then place inside the woman’s womb. When other fertilization techniques have failed, the mother may be older or there is no apparent reason for infertility, then In Vitro Fertilization is frequently recommended.

Whilst every clinic works slightly differently, the main procedure is a fairly routine one. At the start of your treatment your doctor gives you drugs to block the hormones your pituitary gland usually produces during your monthly cycle. The reason for this is so the physician has improved control over when your eggs are produced. To ensure you ovaries produce more than a single egg, further drugs are given.

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Estrogen levels produced by the eggs are monitored to ensure they rise, using vaginal ultrasound scans and blood tests. Another hormone injection will be given when the tests show the time is right to help the eggs mature. The eggs are collected between 34 and 38 hours after the injection is given so the timing for it is crucial. To collect the eggs, ultrasound guidance is used and as it takes about half an hour, either drugs or a general anesthetic is given which may make you feel drowsy.

Around the time the woman’s eggs are collected, the male produces a fresh sample of sperm. The health of the sperm is important so after a short storage period they are spun at high speed after being washed so only the healthiest and most active are used. For a woman using donated sperm, the same process is used once the sperm has been taken from the freezer. The process then continues with the eggs and sperm left for 16 to 20 hours in a laboratory dish to mix and after that period, checked to see if they have fertilized. Successfully fertilized embryos are then left for a further day to two days before the last inspection is carried out.

To ensure the womb is ready for the fertilized egg, two days after they have been collected, the womb lining is prepared by giving you pessaries, gel or an injection.

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