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The Art of ART

All About Assisted Reproductive Technology

By Teri Brown

"Although egg retrieval requires sedation and modest amounts of anesthesia, embryo transfer is typically painless and allows women to return to work after a period of modified bed rest at home," Dr. Miller says. "The amount of time spent at rest is highly dependent upon physician preferences and is rarely substantiated by any scientific evidence. It just seems to make sense to put the body at rest following transfer to avoid any potential stress to the embryo."

According to Dr. Miller, GIFT, ZIFT and TET have become less popular over time as IVF and ICSI success rates have increased, but these procedures still offer viable alternatives in special cases.

GIFT entails stimulation and egg retrieval just as IVF does, but instead of sperm and eggs being combined in a laboratory, they are inserted into a woman's fallopian tube during a laparoscopic procedure immediately following egg retrieval.

"The thought behind this technique is that it most closely mimics nature by putting sperm and egg together in the same environment where they would be in a natural conceptive cycle," Dr. Miller says. "The limitations are that the fallopian tubes must be normal, male factor and fertilization issues are not addressed, and patients must have an additional procedure that can be costly and is not without some risk (laparoscopy)."

Want to see more?

• The Future of IVF: What Is Minimal Stimulation?
• Clinical Trials for Conception: What You Need to Know Before You Sign Up
• Infertility Insurance Coverage: Basics Tips When You're Trying to Conceive
• Check out our Article Library.
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