In the 1970s, British doctors began removing eggs from women who had trouble conceiving and fertilized the eggs in a laboratory. Researchers called this experimental procedure in vitro fertilization (IVF), and after many attempts the first test-tube baby was born in 1978 (Named Louis Brown).
Today, assisted reproductive technology (ART) refers to all treatments that involve handling eggs or embryos outside the body, and this includes IVF as well as a few of its variations. These procedures are usually paired with fertility drugs to increase success rates, and about 35 percent of ART procedures (or cycles) result in the birth of a baby.
ART procedures are invasive, expensive, and can have side effects. When more than one embryo is placed in the uterus, there’s the possibility of a pregnancy with multiples if two or more implant successfully. But so far, no long-term health effects have been linked to children born using ART procedures, and for many people with fertility problems, ART is the best chance of having a biological child.
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