What is assisted reproductive technology (ART)?

The world of infertility issues can be extremely confusing and frustrating. There are a great number of acronyms and specialized jargon associated with fertility treatments, and it can become difficult to keep everything straight, and to understand the options that may be available to you. Here are some common terms related to infertility issues:

* ART, or Assisted Reproductive Technology. This refers to a fertility treatment that requires some form or another of outside intervention in the reproduction process. It is a general term, covering several technologies and procedures, such as IVF, IUI, FET, and others.

* IUI, or Intrauterine Insemination. This procedure is also often referred to as "artificial insemination." In Intrauterine Insemination, a man's sperm are collected, washed, concentrated, and injected directly into the woman's uterus. Intrauterine Insemination increased the sheer number of sperm that make it to the fallopian tubes. The sperm need to be in the fallopian tubes because that is precisely where they can fertilize an egg. The sperm for Intrauterine Insemination may come from a male partner, or from a donor. Intrauterine Insemination is not an effective treatment when the male as low sperm count or abnormal sperm. Very often, IUI treatments will be used along with medications to assist with ovulation, such as Clomid.

* IVF, or In Vitro Fertilization. In Vitro Fertilization refers to a procedure in which some of the woman's eggs are removed from the ovaries. These eggs are then fertilized in a lab, from sperm from the male partner or from a donor. Once the eggs are fertilized, they create embryos. These embryos are transfered to the uterus some time between three and six days after the eggs were retrieved. In Vitro Fertilization has been used in Assisted Reproductive Technology for over three decades. In Vitro Fertilization is most often preceded by other, less invasive and expensive procedures, such as Intrauterine Insemination.

* FET, or Frozen Embryo Transfers. FET is a procedure that is similar to IVF. When a woman goes through In Vitro Fertilization, if there are extra viable embryos, these embryos may be frozen, and saved to use in a later attempt at IVF. FET is most often used for women who are unsuccessful with their first attempt at In Vitro Fertilization, or for a woman who has previously had success with IVF and would like to become pregnant again.