What are the risks of IVF?
IVF is a kind of assisted reproductive technology, which realizes pregnancy by completing fertilization and embryo culture in the laboratory, and then implanting the embryo into a woman's uterus. Although IVF technology has made great achievements in solving the problem of infertility, there are still some risks that need attention. This article will elaborate on the risks of IVF from four aspects: physiological risks, psychological risks, economic risks and ethical risks.
Physiological risk
Operation risk: IVF requires multiple operations, including egg retrieval, fertilization and embryo implantation. These operations have certain risks, which may lead to infection, bleeding, local damage and other problems.
Multiple pregnancy: In order to improve the success rate, doctors usually implant a certain number of embryos during IVF. However, multiple pregnancy will increase the risk of pregnancy complications, such as premature delivery, low birth weight and placental dysfunction.
Genetic problems: IVF technology cannot fully guarantee the normal transcription and translation process of genetic material. Therefore, IVF may face the risk of genetic disorders, such as chromosome aberration and gene mutation.
Psychological risk
Emotional fluctuation: In the process of IVF, periodic treatment failure and waiting for results may bring huge psychological pressure to patients. Many couples experienced long-term anxiety, restlessness and disappointment in the process of IVF, which has a negative impact on their mental health.
Family relationship: Infertile couples may have some impact on marriage and family relationship due to different pressures and expectations after undergoing the process of IVF. Communication and support between husband and wife become particularly important, and family mental health needs to be concerned.
Expectations for children: Test tube babies are born through a series of special processes, and many couples' expectations for children will also be higher. However, when a child may face health problems or do not meet expectations after birth, this psychological gap may have a certain impact on the parents' psychology.
economic risks
High treatment costs: The IVF process is an expensive medical technology, including high costs in egg retrieval, culture, implantation, etc. In addition to medical expenses, additional expenses such as diet, medicine and hospitalization should also be considered, which will impose a certain burden on the family economy.
The success rate is uncertain: the success rate of IVF technology varies from person to person. For some couples, failure after multiple attempts may bring economic pressure. Constant attempts may mean an increasing financial burden.
Education cost: children born after IVF technology may need additional education and rehabilitation training during their growth and development. These costs may become part of the family burden.
Ethical risk
Ethical issues: IVF technology involves the process of embryo selection and screening, which may cause a series of ethical issues. For example, whether gender should be selected and whether gene screening should be carried out should be considered jointly by patients and doctors.
Social acceptance: IVF technology is still controversial in some cultural and social environments. Due to some religious concepts or ethical considerations, IVF may suffer from social discrimination and prejudice.
Privacy issues: IVF technology needs to collect and transmit personal biological information and health data, involving the protection of patients' personal privacy. The management and use of such information need reasonable system and legal guarantee.
To sum up, although IVF technology has helped infertile couples realize their desire to have children, it also comes with certain risks. Before choosing IVF technology, patients need to fully understand these risks, fully communicate with doctors, and make wise decisions based on comprehensive consideration of personal conditions.
