World IVF Day 2023: Are We Overusing IVF? Explains Dr Vaishali Chaudhary

Unexplained Infertility is a diagnosis made when all the primary investigations of the couple are normal, and there is still an inability to conceive.

World IVF Day 2023: The last documented number of IVF babies born by 2018 stood at more than eight million. We can now expect this number to be more than 10 million IVF babies today, 45 years after the birth of the first IVF baby, which was an event that was heavily criticised and surrounded by controversies. IVF today is available. As per the latest report by WHO 3( April 23 ), around 17.5% of the adult population roughly 1 in 6 worldwide experience infertility. However, in most countries, including India, fertility treatments must be funded from the individual’s pocket, so accessing advanced therapies can lead to a medical poverty trap for most low-income couples. Nevertheless, Dr Vaishali Chaudhary, MD, PhD Director of Fertility Momstory by Sahyadri Hospitals, shares the desire for a child and often encourages couples to make significant financial sacrifices.

Newer Indications

Advances in IVF Techniques: Two scientific inventions contributed significantly to the increase in the indications for doing IVF and improved the success rates. First, the invention of Intra Cytoplasmic Sperm Injection revolutionised the use of IVF for men with extremely low sperm counts and other poor sperm parameters, including azoospermia ( zero sperm counts). Second was the use of Vitrification which is the Very Rapid freezing of gametes to minus196 degrees in a few seconds. This freezing method has made IVF safe and increased pregnancy rates significantly. This increased the doctors’ confidence in using IVF as a modality of Fertility Treatment. The use of antagonist injections has made IVF patient friendly and reduced the number of injections as compared to the number of injections given to the woman in the initial days of IVF.
Late Marriages and their Consequences: As more women get married late in their thirties due to their educational and career aspirations, their fertility is declining due to fewer eggs and greater incidences of finding fibroids and adenomyomas in their uteruses. The incidences of divorces and second marriages are also more frequently found in the women visiting fertility clinics.
Egg Freezing: More single women have been unable to find the right partner or are not ready for marriage due to career aspirations. They are coming forward for egg-freezing procedures to preserve their fertility. Fertility Preservation by IVF is also offered to young cancer patients before they start their Chemotherapy or Radiotherapy.

Unexplained Infertility is a diagnosis made when all the primary investigations of the couple are normal, and there is still an inability to conceive. These couples also get better success rates with IVF. Thus there is an ever-increasing demand and addition of indications for IVF.