Definition of
Assisted reproduction
Reproduction is he procedure and the result of reproducing (produce something again, generate a copy or, in the case of living organisms, give birth to a new specimen with the same biological characteristics). assistedfor its part, is what is carried out with some kind of assistance or help.
It is known as Assisted reproduction to the knowledge and the techniques that allow to replace or facilitate the different natural processes that take place in the reproduction of human beings or animals.
Natural reproduction develops from a intercourse between a man and one women. When the man ejaculates into the woman’s vagina and a sperm manages to fertilize an egg, the woman becomes pregnant and, nine months later, she will give birth to her child.
There are various disorders that can hinder or prevent natural reproduction. To overcome these obstacles, the science has developed different techniques that are part of what we know as assisted reproduction.
The artificial insemination, for example, involves the use of an artificial instrument to introduce sperm into the fallopian tubes, cervix, or uterus. This method of assisted reproduction, therefore, replaces the sexual relationship.
Another popular assisted reproductive technique is in vitro fertilizationwhich allows fertilization to develop outside the body of the woman. On the one hand, the oocytes are extracted and on the other, the spermatozoa. Once fertilization has been achieved in an external environment, the fertilized oocyte is implanted in the uterus.
However, we cannot ignore the fact that another method of assisted reproduction is known as egg donation. This is a process that women who want to be mothers but who have serious fertility problems opt for. In this case, what they do is turn to another female who works as an egg donor in order to fulfill the dream of having a child.
In order for any of these assisted reproduction methods to be successful and achieve the desired pregnancy, it must be taken into account that in specialized clinics endless resources are used, depending on the personal circumstances of their patients. Specifically, they can opt for techniques, such as these:
-Semen donation. It basically consists of men acting as sperm donors in an absolutely anonymous way and allowing any woman or couple to use it to have a child.
-Ovule vitrification. Under this unique name is a technique that consists of preserving the fertility of women. Specifically, what it does is that the female who wants to be a mother in the future can achieve it at the right time with all the guarantees. For this reason, before turning 35, which is when her eggs are most fertile, she freezes some to later use them, undergo assisted reproduction and become pregnant.
To these two techniques we should add others such as MACS, which is used to select the best sperm and facilitate fertilization.