In vitro is Latin for “in glass”. Actually the in-vitro
fertilisation (IVF) of an egg removed from a woman’s ovary and
several thousand specially prepared sperm from a man takes place
in special fluid in a petrie dish. The egg and sperm are
incubated for two or three days, and when embryos of 4-8 cells
develop, up to three, but more usually one or two are
transferred via a very fine tube to the woman’s uterus. You can
find out more details of the procedure at the websites given on
the right. Here are some facts about IVF: - Up to one in six
people are unable to conceive when they want to. - Involuntary
childlessness causes real distress to those affected. - The
first baby successfully born as a result of this procedure was
Louise Brown in 1978. - Since then about 68,000 babies have been
born as a result of IVF. - In the UK the NHS provides about 25%
of IVF treatments. - A single cycle of IVF can cost £2000-4000,
with an addition £1000 for drugs. - The success rate per
treatment cycle averages about 22%. - Sin