Step 1: Hormone Stimulation and Oocyte Production

Stimulating the growth of the egg inside the female’s body is the first step in creating a test tube baby. Two prescribed injectable hormones, gonadotropins and GnRHa, are mainly used for this purpose.

When these hormones are given in precisely calculated amounts, the follicles that are already present in the ovaries are stimulated to grow and mature. An hCG injection promotes the last stage of egg maturation; egg retrieval usually takes place 36 hours after the injection.

Step 2: Oocyte Retrieval

The next stage is to surgically remove the eggs from the female’s body after hormone stimulation. Either local or general anesthetic is used during this treatment to guarantee the least amount of discomfort. 

The fluid from every mature follicle and the eggs are removed from each ovary using a needle-equipped vaginal ultrasound probe. The fluid is then inspected under a microscope to determine the identity of the eggs, which are subsequently incubated in a petri dish with a specific medium.

Step 3: Semen Collection

Concurrent with the procedure of retrieving the eggs, the male partner offers a new sample of semen. This is crucial for the next step, where fertilization requires both sperm and eggs.

Step 4: Fertilization in Petri Dish

Crucial to the process of creating a test tube baby is combining the collected sperm and eggs in a petri dish. The petri dish is combined and then incubated to allow for fertilization. 

The expert evaluates the combination the next day to look for evidence of fertilization and watches the embryo’s growth over the next few days to make sure it is ready to be transferred into the uterus.

Step 5: Embryo Transfer

To create a test tube baby, the developed embryos are transferred into the woman’s uterus at the final stage. One to three separate embryos are inserted into the uterus using a thin catheter. After embryo transfer, hormone support is given to aid in the possibility of pregnancy. 

To ascertain the status of pregnancy, blood beta-hCG levels are assessed 14 days after embryo transfer. Test tube pregnancies can have success rates as high as 50% for single embryo transfer cycles and as high as 85–90% for three embryo transfer cycles combined. Success rates, however, vary throughout couples and are dependent on several variables.