India is way ahead in assisted reproduction

Hyderabad: India is much ahead of European Countries in terms of assisted reproductive technologies. The quality and cost of the treatment is much better in India than in many other countries, said Telangana State Secretary of Indian Fertility Society Dr Roya Rozati.

The options available to treat infertile women are also more, he added. Addressing the media after a panel discussion organized by the Indian Fertility Society (Telangana) at Marigold Hotel in Begumpet on using cryobiology to preserve women’s fertility, Dr Roya said, “with the recent advancements in assisted reproductive technologies and techniques like cryopreservation, even women who were not able to conceive due to early-onset cancer, early menopause or for any other reason can now conceive a baby.”

At the panel discussion, fertility specialists and embryologists from various medical institutions proposed freezing ovarian tissues as a good option for preserving the fertility in women. The process, known as cryopreservation involves controlled freezing of eggs under medical supervision without allowing formation of ice crystals after extracting them. The frozen eggs are later thawed and used for injecting sperms using techniques like In Vitro Fertilization, popularly known as IVF and ICSI. Using this technique, a woman can choose to postpone her motherhood.

Experts consider the method as one of the most effective procedures in assisted reproduction, as it helps preserving eggs or even embryos. By preserving reproductive tissues or eggs, fertility experts and specialists can actually preserve your fertility and boost your chances of pregnancy that usually seem to diminish with age or constrained by career choices. The process is more like pausing motherhood by freezing your eggs and resuming it when you are ready for motherhood. For instance, a woman may choose to freeze her eggs at the age of 20 and use it 20 years later to become a mother at the age of 40. Simply put, the chances are higher for a woman whose eggs were extracted in early twenties than eggs that were extracted at the age of 40.

Experts stressed that cryopreservation can not only help women, but also help men who can choose to freeze their sperms in case they are not available at the time of IVF treatment. Similarly, freezing of oocytes can help women who suffer from early menopause. The technique can also help women from career constraints. A live procedure of Ovarian Tissue Freezing was also demonstrated on the occasion.

Secretary General at IFS Dr Pankaj Talwar expressed his happiness over India’s progress in the field. National Coordinator for Cryobiology Dr Pranay Gosh, IFS Telangana Treasurer Dr Lakshmi Krishna Leela, Dr Charulata Chatterjee, Dr Srilatha Gorthi, Dr Ch. Swapna, Dr Movva Madhuri, Dr Radhika Reddy Pingilli and others were also present on this occasion.