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New Year, Time For New Options Pt. III

© Debbi Carter

In the previous article, we looked at some low-tech treatment options that you and your partner might want to explore. In this article, the last in the series, we will look at some more advanced, high-tech options that are available today. After reading through all of these articles, sit down with your partner and decide where you are at in your infertility journey. Discuss what you have tried, what you are willing to try, and what you feel your next step should be. Be willing and open to listen to what your partner wants and is willing to try, and always remember that your goal is the same - a healthy pregnancy.

High-Tech Treatment Options

In the previous article, the most "advanced" low-tech treatment option we looked at was IUI. The next step from IUI is usually IVF, In Vitro Fertilization. IVF is the process of stimulating the woman to get her to produce a larger number of eggs, which are removed from her ovaries before she ovulates. The eggs are then mixed with sperm, usually from her partner, in a "petri dish" and allowed to fertilize and begin developing. After two days, three or four fertilized eggs are chosen and then inserted into the woman's uterus.

If a woman has clear fallopian tubes, a slightly different procedure may work better than IVF, GIFT or Gamete Intra Fallopian Transfer. GIFT is similar to IVF in that the eggs are removed from the ovaries before the woman is allowed to ovulate, and are mixed with sperm. However, that is where the similarities end. Instead of allowing the eggs to be fertilized in a petri dish, they are immediately placed into the woman's fallopian tubes along with the sperm cells. Nature is then allowed to "take its course" and fertilization happens within the fallopian tubes. GIFT is especially beneficial if the woman does not produce fertile cervical fluid, or if the man does not produce enough "working" sperm cells.

ZIFT is another variation on the IVF procedure. ZIFT, Zygote Intra Fallopian Transfer, is a combination of IVF and GIFT. With ZIFT, the woman is stimulated so she will produce multiple eggs, and before ovulation occurs, the eggs are surgically removed. They are then mixed with sperm in a petri dish and allowed to fertilize. The fertilized eggs are then transferred into the woman's fallopian tubes to further develop and hopefully implant.

Sometimes the problem is that the man has either had a vasectomy and a reversal failed, or for other reasons, does not have sperm in his ejaculate. When this is the case, microsurgical aspiration of sperm cells directly from the testicle is usually the best answer for a biological child. The woman, if she does not have any infertility issues, can under go an IUI with the aspirated sperm cells inserted into her uterus. Aspirated sperm cells can also be used in IVF, GIFT, and ZIFT procedures.

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