Invitro Fertilization

Everyday, doctors and surgeons encounter ethical issues. With today’s medical technology, couples who are unable to conceive children naturally can use artificial reproductive technology like in vitro fertilization as an alternative. In vitro fertilization is basically making a baby outside of the mother’s body by uniting sperm and egg inside a laboratory. By doing so, natural sexual conception is bypassed (Johnson 2005). When it comes to a procedure as controversial as in vitro fertilization, a major ethical issue comes up; should couples who cannot conceive naturally be allowed to use in vitro fertilization (using their own sperm and eggs) to have children?

In today’s world, in vitro fertilization is an increasingly popular alternative to natural conception. In vitro fertilization, or IVF, is basically a technique where egg cells are fertilized by sperm outside of the woman’s womb (Johnson 2005). The process involves controlling the ovulation process using hormones and drugs, removing eggs from the woman's ovaries, and then fertilizing them with the father’s sperm in a fluid medium (Johnson 2005). The fertilized egg, or embryo, is then transferred to the natural mother’s or a surrogate mother’s uterus. From this point on, the embryo develops naturally (Johnson 2005). If done properly, the result will be a successful pregnancy, and a perfectly healthy baby will be born.

When it comes to in vitro fertilization, many different combinations of sperm, egg, and host mother are possible. The sperm and egg can come from two natural parents, or from donors. The host mother can be the natural mother, or a surrogate mother. Most IVF patients, however, try to use their own sperm and eggs and avoid using a surrogate mother (Johnson 2005).

In vitro fertilization is truly a wonderful alternative for people who cannot naturally have children. The most obvious benefit of IVF is that it helps infertile couples have children. With the help of IVF, couples with ovulation disorders, Endometriosis, low sperm count, or sperm problems like sperm immobility have a much greater chance of having children (Mello 2007). Since scientists artificially fertilize eggs with sperm outside of the body, these problems are bypassed. Another benefit of IVF is the actual embryo transfer to the uterus. Since the fertilized eggs are placed directly in the uterus, women without functioning fallopian tubes can still get pregnant (Mello 2007). Basically, IVF is such a wonderful thing because it gives people who cannot otherwise have children get the wonderful opportunity of being a parent. Another major benefit of IVF is the ability to know before transfer takes place if the male's sperm has actually fertilized the eggs (Mello 2007). If fertilization fails to take place, changes can be made in the processing of semen or the fertilization conditions during a future attempt. IVF is a relatively successful procedure; it is successful 67% of the time in women under the age of 35 (Mello 2007). IVF is also beneficial in another big way. It gives scientists the chance to study fertilization and embryo development. This may lead to new medical advancements.

Although in vitro fertilization has many benefits, it also has many drawbacks. One major drawback is the side effects of the drugs taken while undergoing IVF. The hormones and medications used to control ovulation tend to cause depression, hot flushes and dizziness (Bennett 1998). One of the biggest drawbacks is all of the extra embryos. When laboratories perform in vitro fertilization, they end up with many extra embryos. Every year lOO,OOO live embryos from IVF are discarded or frozen (Bennett 1998). These embryos are essentially wasted, since they are not usually used for any other purpose. Another drawback of IVF is the cost. IVF procedures can cost more than $10,000 (Mathis 2007). Not everyone can afford this kind of money. This makes IVF almost exclusive to those who are wealthy. Another drawback of IVF is the risk of failure. Although the procedure, works most of the time for those under the age of 35, this is not the case for those who are older. For women over 40 years of age, the success rate drops to less than 4% (Bennett 1998). If the procedure does not work, a great amount money and time will be wasted. Also, the fact that IVF patients are more likely to have multiple children at the same time (twins, triplets, etc.) may be a drawback for some people. Since scientists sometimes plant multiple embryos in the mother’s uterus