Louise Joy Brown became the first baby born through IVF (in-vitro fertilization) in 1978. This started a revolution that has since brought a smile and more to plenty of couples without children across the world. It is said that to date the process has helped birth over five million babies all around the world! Despite its success, there are still some misconceptions and myths about the process, and we will attempt to dispel some of them here based on information provided by an IVF doctor and more. People must be educated about the process with authentic and, thus, reliable information about the treatment.
IVF can lead to multiple pregnancies
As an IVF doctor will tell you, this is applicable only in cases where multiple embryos are transferred in a single cycle. Usually, when eggs and sperm are fertilized successfully it leads to the development of an embryo that the doctors then place in the mother’s uterus by way of a process referred to as embryo transfer. However, multiple pregnancies carry various risks with them, and this is why fertility specialists always advise that you go for SET (single embryo transfer) in each cycle. Only in specific complicated cases do doctors allow the transfer of multiple embryos.
IVF is supposed to be for women only
If you talk to an IVF doctor you will realize that it is a misconception as well. As we have said already, in this process sperm from men and eggs from women are fertilized together in a lab. Nowadays, IVF is being used in conjunction with various male infertility treatments such as ICSI (Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection), PESA (Percutaneous Epididymal Sperm Aspiration), and TESA (Testicular Sperm Aspiration). For example, if the case of male infertility is severe doctors might use ICSI along with IVF.
In IVF success happens by luck
As any IVF doctor will tell you, nothing could be farther from the truth. Just take a look around the world and see how popular the form of treatment is, and you will realize this as well! Medical science has advanced recently, and this is why these procedures have become even more sophisticated so that the risk of failure can be minimized even more. Your fertility specialist will at every stage of the treatment monitor how well you are doing before taking the next step. For this, they will employ methods such as blood tests and ultrasounds.
Conclusion
There are several other misconceptions and myths that people have even now about the process as an IVF doctor will tell you. It is said that the process leads to early menopause. A lot of people also think that if you fail in one cycle you will fare similarly in the subsequent ones as well. There is also a rather ludicrous suggestion that your lifestyle has no impact on the chances of success with IVF. People also say that this is the last solution in cases of infertility, and this is why people should wait before they even decide to avail of it.