Procreation in the Lab – the Last Resort for Having a Child
When a couple decides to have children, they almost never think about this being an impossibility. However, in some cases, after years of trying, they begin to consider their options. If you find yourself in this position, you need to know that it is not always necessary to use in vitro fertilization. This is generally the last resort, in case other options such as artificial insemination do not work.
Artificial insemination is a simple and painless procedure that is justified when, for one reason or another, the sperm cannot reach the egg in order to fertilize it. Sometimes, the sperm is not optimal, so it needs to be treated before being introduced in the genital tract of women. It also happens that the cervical mucus impedes the passage of sperm through the cervix. Sometimes, natural insemination is not possible because of ejaculation problems.
Artificial insemination is one of the oldest medical techniques used in medically assisted procreation. Two types of insemination are possible: artificial insemination with donor sperm and artificial insemination with the husband’s or partner’s sperm. The procedure is simple in principle and provides an overall pregnancy rate of 10 to 15% per treatment cycle.
Insemination is in all cases possible if the semen quality is good or slightly reduced, but it is not indicated in patients with severe abnormalities. Finally, this method is indicated before in vitro fertilization in cases of unexplained infertility in women who are not too old. It is now accepted that artificial insemination should be systematically associated with the stimulation of ovulation.
Artificial insemination can increase the chances of pregnancy by acting simultaneously on the following factors: improving the quality of ovulation and production, triggering of ovulation at the right time, giving the precise knowledge of the time of ovulation, insemination at the optimum time and placing the sperm directly near the fallopian tubes when ovulation will take place.
Artificial insemination is governed by the laws of bioethics and is practiced only in authorized centers. Generally, it is allowed among married or cohabiting couples living together for at least two years of childbearing age. The couple must complete a consent form before insemination takes place.
Insemination can sometimes be performed on a natural cycle, especially if infertility is related to an obstruction in the female genital tract. More often, doctors prefer to help the ovaries to produce eggs. To this end, the woman will receive a treatment for the induction of ovulation during the first half cycle and the effects will be monitored by performing an ultrasound and hormonal tests. The doctors will then inject HCG (chorionic gonadotropin hormone) in mid-cycle to induce ovulation.
You will need to prevent the medical team if there’s pain or your belly swells, as these symptoms may reflect excessive stimulation of the ovaries (ovarian hyper stimulation), which is potentially dangerous.
On the morning of insemination, if fresh sperm is used, the man will go to a specialized laboratory approved by the Department of Health to collect semen. A period of abstinence from 3 to 5 days is generally recommended before this procedure. The semen will be analyzed and prepared to select the most mobile sperm and eliminate other cells, and then it will be quickly transported inside a syringe to the place of insemination. If a sperm donor is used, he must be over 45 and have the consent of his partner. The gift of sperm is always anonymous.
Insemination is a simple and painless process, which is performed on a patient lying in gynecological position. It consists of introducing a fine catheter, connected to the syringe containing the sperm inside the uterus to deposit approximately one ml of semen prepared in the laboratory (intrauterine insemination). In other cases, especially in case of failure of the cervical mucus or donor insemination, semen is deposited in the cervix (cervical intrauterine insemination). However, this technique is now less used because its results are generally less satisfactory than those of intrauterine insemination are.
After insemination, it is sufficient that for the woman to rest for 10 to 30 minutes and she can then resume a normal life. It will take from 15 to 18 days to find out whether the insemination was successful or not.
About The Author: Robert O. Dewald has written this article.
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