Assisted reproductive technologies (ART), by the American Center for Disease Control (CDC) definition, are any fertility-related treatments in which eggs or embryos are manipulated. Procedures where only sperm are manipulated, such as intrauterine inseminations, are not considered under this definition. Additionally, procedures in which ovarian stimulation is performed without a plan for egg retrieval are also excluded from the definition.
The first successful in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment in humans was performed in 1978 in England – a woman had an unstimulated menstrual cycle, and physicians performed a laparoscopic retrieval of a single oocyte from the ovary. The oocyte was then fertilized in vitro and subsequently transferred as an embryo into her uterus.
Since that time, IVF technology has developed and expanded in access worldwide. This review will discuss current techniques in assisted reproductive technologies and discuss indications and associated risks.
IVF is by far the most common ART procedure performed and will be chiefly reviewed along with associated techniques such as cryopreservation and intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI).
Copyright © 2024, StatPearls Publishing LLC.