There are many issues concerned when discussing the topic of IVF, this report aims to analyse these issues in detail. It intends to cover the history, facts, controversies and ethics and values concerned with IVF treatment.

In order for pregnancy to occur, an egg has to be released from the ovary (female) and unite with a sperm (male) during sexual intercourse. Normally this coming together, called fertilization, occurs within the fallopian tube, which joins the uterus (womb) to the ovary. However, in some circumstances natural conception cannot occur due to factors affecting the couples' fertility. In Vitro Fertilisation allows for the union of the female egg and the male sperm cell, the union which usually occurs in the fallopian tubes instead is carried out in a laboratory after eggs and sperm have been collected, from the male and female.

In Vitro Fertilisation is a fertility procedure, which first succeeded with the first 'test tube' baby being born

Another ethical question has to be asked, that is " what happens to the embryos when they are no longer needed?', the use of frozen embryos that are no longer needed by the mother for research (for example in to stem cells) is a largely contested issue. A lot of the problem for some people is due to the embryos being destroyed during the course of research. Some groups protest that these embryos have the right to life, whereas other scientists reply that they would have been destroyed anyway.

The process of IVF is a long a complex procedure, below the technique for an IVF procedure is described:

There are several groups to whom IVF treatment may be advised that include:

ICSI is a recent development associated with IVF which allows the sperm to be directly injected in to the egg. This is used for sperm, which has problems penetrating the egg, and results in success rates equal to or higher than normal fertilisation.

Semen is also taken from the husband, which can be analysed using 'sperm penetration assays', where some sperm is checked to see whether it can puncture a zone-stripped hamster egg. The sperm can also be cultured to detect bacteria which can reduce the chances of pregnancy.

The mother has to wait two weeks before she returns to the clinic for the pregnancy test. During this time she can boost the chances of pregnancy by continuing to take the female hormone progesterone- which keeps the uterus lining thickened and suitable for implantation to occur. The chances of a successful pregnancy are approximately 20 per cent for each IVF cycle.

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Approximate Word count = 1847
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page double spaced)