What side effects does IVF have on the body?
Test tube baby is an important way of assisted reproductive technology, which makes many infertile couples realize their dream of childbirth. However, this technology also has some side effects that need to be taken seriously. This article will elaborate on the side effects of IVF from four aspects: mental health, physical health, genetic diseases and multiple pregnancy.
mental health
In the process of IVF treatment, both husband and wife will experience long-term anxiety, tension and expectation. If a treatment fails, it is easy to cause a heavy psychological blow to both husband and wife. Therefore, in the process of IVF treatment, both husband and wife need to actively adjust their mentality, maintain an optimistic attitude, and seek psychological support and consultation at the same time.
In addition, the birth of IVF will also have an impact on family relations. For some families, the birth of IVF may solve their troubles for many years, but it may also bring new pressure and responsibility to families. Therefore, both husband and wife need to communicate and prepare well before the birth of IVF, and face new family roles and responsibilities together.
After the success of IVF treatment, parents need to pay attention to the fact that children obtained through assisted reproductive technology may be different from genetic parents, and this difference may have a psychological impact on children during their growth. Therefore, parents need to give IVF babies extra care and support to help them build good self-awareness and self-esteem.
Physical health
Compared with natural pregnancy, IVF may have more risks and side effects during pregnancy. First of all, because the process of IVF is carried out in vitro, the environment for embryo preparation is different from that of natural uterus, which may lead to abnormal development or malformation of embryos.
Secondly, when evaluating embryo quality, different embryos may adopt different evaluation criteria, which may lead to errors in selecting embryos. At the same time, in the process of embryo transfer, endometriosis and other complications may be caused, which may pose a certain risk to maternal health.
In addition, IVF babies often need adjuvant drugs to promote ovarian development and control ovulation. These drugs may cause hormonal imbalance, as well as some side effects, such as thrombosis and ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome.
Genetic disease
During IVF treatment, genetic testing may be required to screen embryos carrying genetic diseases. However, due to the limitations of gene detection technology and the complexity of diseases, it is still impossible to completely exclude the risk of carrying genetic diseases.
In addition, some gene mutations carried by the biological parents of IVF may be passed on to offspring, increasing the probability of offspring suffering from certain genetic diseases. Therefore, in the selection process of test tube babies, both spouses need to conduct comprehensive genetic counseling and genetic testing to assess the risk of carrying genetic diseases.
Multiple pregnancy
In the process of IVF treatment, in order to improve the success rate, multiple embryos are often transferred into the uterus. This may lead to multiple pregnancies and increase the health risks of pregnant women and fetuses.
For pregnant women, multiple pregnancy means a higher number of fetuses and a higher risk of pregnancy complications. Common pregnancy complications include premature delivery, placental abnormalities, pre eclampsia, etc. These complications will increase the incidence of bleeding, hypertension, gestational diabetes and other problems in pregnant women.
For the fetus, multiple pregnancy may increase the risk of birth defects, growth retardation and premature delivery. Therefore, in the process of IVF treatment, doctors will consider comprehensively according to the patient's situation to avoid the occurrence of multiple pregnancies.
To sum up, IVF has some side effects while realizing the fertility desire of infertile couples. For couples who want to receive IVF treatment, they need to fully understand these side effects, actively cooperate with the doctor's treatment plan, and pay attention to the risks of mental health, physical health, genetic diseases and multiple pregnancies during the treatment process to ensure their own and baby's health.
