In Vitro Fertilization (IVF)

In vitro fertilisation (IVF) is a process by which egg cells are fertilized by sperm outside the womb, in vitro. IVF is a major treatment in infertility when other methods of assisted reproductive technology have failed. The process involves hormonally controlling the ovulatory process, removing ova (eggs) from the woman's ovaries and letting sperm fertilise them in a fluid medium. The fertilised egg (zygote) is then transferred to the patient's uterus with the intent to establish a successful pregnancy.
The first "test tube baby", Louise Brown, was born in 1978.(From Wikipedia Encyclopedia)

In vitro fertilization is the most common form of assisted reproductive technology, used for women who are unable to get pregnant. " a woman's egg is removed, fertilized with sperm in a glass dish in the lab, and then put into her uterus. Good candidates for this procedure are women whose fallopian tubes have been damaged, have not been able to find out why they cannot get pregnant, or have husbands who are infertile. The term in vitro, from the Latin root meaning within the glass, is used, because early biological experiments involving cultivation of tissues outside the living organism from which they came, were carried out in glass containers such as beakers, test tubes, or petri dishes.

Today, the term in vitro is used to refer to any biological procedure that is performed outside the organism it would normally be occurring in, to distinguish it from an in vivo procedure, where the tissue remains inside the living organism within which it is normally found. A colloquial term for babies conceived as the result of IVF, test tube babies, refers to the tube-shaped containers of glass or plastic resin, called test tubes, that are commonly used in chemistry labs and biology labs. However, in vitro fertilisation is usually performed in the shallower containers called Petri dishes. (Petri-dishes may also be made of plastic resins).

About 20 to 25 percent of the women who have this procedure will get pregnant. In vitro fertilization is most successful in women who are under 34 years of age. This procedure is usually done after intensive fertility testing has been done and the cause of the infertility is known. In most cases other fertility treatments have already been tried before this expensive procedure is attempted. The process begins by giving hormones to the woman to increase the ovaries ability to produce eggs. The woman is asked to take her temperature and do urine tests at home. She also receives blood tests and is watched closely by the medical team. This is done to try to determine, within hours, the time of ovulation. Her partner will give a sperm sample so it can be tested before the procedure.