The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : Technology steps in to help nature

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Aug 29, 2007
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Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

Technology steps in to help nature

Sahana Charan

Bangalore: In today’s era of advanced technologies, where a quick fix is available for almost every problem, infertility can also be treated with a degree of success. But the technology is accessible only to a certain percentage of people as it is very expensive in India. “There will soon come a time that all problems related to infertility and abnormalities in the foetus can be corrected through advanced technology and people will be childless only because they choose to remain so,” says Kamini Rao.

Assisted reproductive technologies (ART) are medical treatments to overcome infertility. Many infertile couples receive ART treatments such as medications to correct ovulatory difficulties or surgery to correct anatomical problems.

In vitro fertilisation (IVF) is the most common type of ART. Eggs and sperm are mixed in a laboratory dish to fertilise and some of the fertilised eggs (zygotes) are then transferred to the uterus. IVF is fertilisation of eggs outside the body under laboratory conditions similar to those inside the body. The procedure is performed with sedation on an outpatient basis.

Intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) is the injection of a single sperm into an egg. The fertilized egg is then placed in the woman’s uterus or fallopian tube. Used with in vitro fertilization, ICSI is often a successful trea tment for men with impaired sperm or have ejaculatory problems. Intracytoplasmic sperm injection is a technique where a single sperm is injected into the egg by piercing the shell. The female partner is given fertility drugs to help produce a number of eggs that are then removed by surgery. The process of injecting a single sperm into an egg is then carried out.

Gamete Intra-fallopian transfer (GIFT) involves collecting eggs from the ovaries, then placing them into a thin flexible tube with the sperm. This is then injected into the woman’s fallopian tubes, where the fertilisation takes p lace.

Zygote intrafallopian transfer (ZIFT) combines the procedures used in IVF and GIFT and the success rate is supposed to be higher than IVF.

Embryo cryopreservation entails freezing of fertilised oocytes. It is a service offered to patients when as a result of participation in an IVF procedure, more fertilised eggs are available than can be used in an IVF procedure.

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