Fertility treatment: In vitro fertilisation (IVF)...

In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) is the most advanced, sophisticated and successful form of fertility therapy available. In simple terms, IVF means fertilization outside the body. After ovarian stimulation, eggs are collected from the woman's ovaries and then fertilized by the husband's sperm in a petri dish or a test tube in a controlled laboratory environment. The resulting embryos are deposited into the woman's uterus by embryo transfer. If the process is successful, one or more embryos get implanted in the lining of the womb leading to pregnancy.

 

WHO IS A CANDIDATE FOR IVF?

In vitro fertilization statistics suggest that couples under the age of 35 who have been trying to conceive for more than a year without results are ideal candidates for in vitro fertilization. Couples over the age of 35 who have been trying to conceive for six months may also be good candidates for IVF treatment. The following are a few causes of infertility that may be treated with in vitro fertilization:


Ovulation disorders
Blocked or damaged fallopian tubes
Endometriosis
Low sperm count
Sperm problems such as sperm immotility
Unexplained Infertility


Although there is no established age limit on in vitro fertilization, many infertility clinics and hospitals consider your age as part of the candidate screening process.


STEPS IN IVF

There are five major steps in the IVF and embryo transfer sequence:

1.) Monitoring and stimulating the development of healthy egg(s) in the ovaries.
2.) Collection of eggs.
3.) Obtaining the sperm.
4.) Putting the eggs and sperm together in the laboratory, and providing conducive environment for fertilization and early embryo growth.
5.) Transferring the embryos into the uterus.

The Egg Retrieval Process: The retrieval procedure to obtain the eggs is performed trans-vaginally using a hollow needle guided by the ultrasound image (this is completely comfortable under adequate sedation and local anesthesia). Eggs are gently removed from the ovaries using the needle. This is called "follicular aspiration." Its timing is crucial because the egg will not develop properly if it is collected too early; if too late, the egg also may develop poorly or may have already been released from the ovary and lost.

The eggs are immediately identified by our embryologists in our special IVF laboratory. They are placed with the sperm in incubators to allow fertilization to take place. The eggs are examined carefully at intervals to ensure that fertilization and cell division have taken place; the fertilized eggs are now called embryos.

Embryos are usually placed in the wife's uterus 2 or 3 days after egg retrieval. A speculum is inserted into the vagina to expose the neck of the womb (cervix). The embryos are suspended in a tiny drop of fluid and then very gently introduced through a catheter into the womb, often under ultrasound guidance. The transfer is followed by a resting period, blood tests and possibly ultrasound examinations to verify if pregnancy has been established.


BENEFITS

One of the most obvious benefits of in vitro fertilization is that it can enable an infertile couple to have a baby. IVF treatment can also reduce the need for surgery on the fallopian tubes.
In a recent study, nearly 1,000 European children who were conceived through in vitro fertilization and monitored from birth until age 5 were shown to be as healthy as children who were conceived naturally.


RISKS

There are certain risks associated with in vitro fertilization, as there are with any surgical procedure. Due to the technology and medical expertise necessary for IVF, cycles of treatment can be expensive., and the initial cycle does not always work. In addition, the use of multiple embryos during embryo transfer has been known to cause multiple births.


IVF STATISTICS - PREGNANCY SUCCESS RATES

There are many factors that play a role in the success of IVF treatment, including the viability of the embryos, the age of the mother, and the quality of the sperm. In the United States, IVF success rates have been relatively high. By the end of 2002, nearly 300,000 babies conceived through assisted reproductive technology had been born. Currently, 99 percent of ART pregnancies are the result of IVF treatment. Approximately 37 percent of women under the age of 36 who undergo IVF experience a successful pregnancy.

The success rates of IVF, as presented by these statistics, are similar to the success rates of natural means (copulation). The rate of miscarriage following IVF is also comparable to the rate of miscarriage after natural conception. Ectopic pregnancies occur in roughly 3 to 5 percent of in vitro fertilization cases, the same rate as in pregnancies achieved naturally.

Prevention in FLU and SWINE FLU...

 


                     Swine flu: Dos and Dont's to protect yourself from the deadly disease

 


The recent death of a 51-year-old woman, who passed away two days ago at the Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, after being diagnosed with the deadly swine flu virus, has once again rung the alarm bells in the city.

It is important to protect yourself before the disease strikes you as its next target. But, there is absolutely no need to panic as we bring to you measures, that you should help to keep the disease at bay.

Swine flu carrier, the H1N1 influenza virus, is prone to appear in winter months. It is characterised by throat problems, body ache and respiratory complications.

Here are the dos and dont's to be followed:


Do's list:


-Avoid close contact with an infected person.

-It is always recommended to cover your mouth and nose while coughing and sneezing.

-Wash your hands frequently with disinfectant soap and water.

-Extra care is needed for children.

-Get yourself checked in case of high fever and breathlessness.

 


Dont's list:


 

-As the flu is now spreading by people-to-people to contact, avoid visiting closed and crowded places.

-Always ensure wearing a mask while going close to an infected person.

-Don't touch your mouth and nose before washing your hands properly.

-Keep your surroundings clean and don't forget to sanitize rooms or belongings that may have been used by patients with influenza symptoms.

‘Mera Kya Hoga?’ is a question that haunts almost

‘Mera Kya Hoga?’ is a question that haunts almost everyone of us… maybe once in a month, once in a week  or probably twice daily. If you are an Indian, it’s not difficult to understand what merakyahoga means. But for someone not well acquainted with the Hindi language, it simply means-‘what will happen to me?’ and that’s exactly what this website helps its users with. 

Merakyahoga.com helps millions of people deal with thousands of problems that they face every day. Often in times of crisis, we look for solace by sharing things with people around us or by asking for their advice. But, we really are at loss sometimes because even after approaching so many people, we are not gratified and don’t know if we could trust their opinions. This is where Merakyahoga.comcomes to their rescue.

Merakyahoga.com helps users from all over India and abroad shares their worries and problems that have been for long plaguing them, seek professional medical advice from various experts in all medical categories. These are experts’ opinions so the troubled could be rest assured with the advice given to them and they also get myriad opinions and zero in on the one that that they find to be best suited to them. If any of the experts has been successful with the conviction, the patient can directly contact them. We, at Merakyahoga.com, don’t restrict the communication between the two because we believe in the concept and nurturing of ‘H2H’ or ‘Human To Human’ relationship. Humans need to connect with humans. Merakyahoga.com is built around the concept of H2H and helping around millions of users with their daily struggles in life. We, on one hand, coax users to share their problems on our website daily and on the other hand, persuade the experts to guide the users with the ‘Right Advice’. 

www.merakyahoga.com