Why is it in news?

Using frozen embryos for in vitro fertilisation (IVF) gives infertile couples just as much of a chance of having a child as using fresh ones, a study has found.

Details

• Researchers from the University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Vietnam and University of Adelaide in Australia showed that ongoing pregnancy rates and live births were equivalent in a group of IVF women implanted with frozen embryos compared with fresh embryos.
• The study, published in The New England Journal of Medicine, investigated almost 800 women who had infertility not related to polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS).
• Women were given one cycle of IVF, where either a transfer of fresh embryos occurred, or all embryos were frozen and one cycle of thawed embryos occurred subsequently without the use of IVF drugs.
• After the first completed cycle of IVF, ongoing pregnancy occurred in 36% of women in the frozen embryo group, and in 35% of the fresh embryo group.
• Rates of live birth after the first embryo transfer were 34% in the frozen embryo group, and 32% in the fresh embryo group.
• This new study shows that infertile women not suffering from PCOS have equivalent live IVF birth rates from frozen embryos, which is important news for infertile women worldwide.
• The key finding is that freezing embryos for IVF is not harming a couple’s chances of having a baby. After the first fresh embryo transfer, it will be possible to freeze the remaining embryos and transfer them one by one, which is safe and effective.
• While many clinics are moving completely away from fresh embryo transfers, the freezing process adds additional costs in IVF and does not result in higher rates of live births. Now couples need not go down the path of unnecessary extra costs of freezing all embryos.
• But the research results are specific to a common freezing method known as Cryotech vitrification, so it may not apply to all embryo freezing techniques currently being used. Further research will be needed to compare pregnancy outcomes and live birth rates from other embryo freezing techniques.

About IVF

• In vitro fertilisation (IVF) is a process of fertilization where an egg is combined with sperm outside the body, in vitro ("in glass").
• The process involves monitoring and stimulating a woman's ovulatory process, removing an ovum or ova (egg or eggs) from the woman's ovaries and letting sperm fertilise them in a liquid in a laboratory.
• The fertilised egg (zygote) undergoes embryo culture for 2–6 days, and is then transferred to the same or another woman's uterus, with the intention of establishing a successful pregnancy.
• IVF is a type of assisted reproductive technology used for infertility treatment and gestational surrogacy, in which a fertilised egg is implanted into a surrogate's uterus and the resulting child, is genetically unrelated to the surrogate.
• Some countries banned or otherwise regulate the availability of IVF treatment, giving rise to fertility tourism.
• Restrictions on availability of IVF include costs and age to carry a healthy pregnancy to term. IVF is mostly attempted if less invasive or expensive options have failed or are unlikely to work.

Source

The Hindu