1. Ovulation & Fertility Slideshow Pictures
2. Early Pregnancy Symptoms Quiz
3. Stages of Pregnancy Slideshow Pictures

Medical Author:

Melissa Conrad Stöppler, MD, Chief Medical Editor

Melissa Conrad Stöppler, MD, Chief Medical Editor

Melissa Conrad Stöppler, MD, is a U.S. board-certified Anatomic Pathologist with subspecialty training in the fields of Experimental and Molecular Pathology. Dr. Stöppler's educational background includes a BA with Highest Distinction from the University of Virginia and an MD from the University of North Carolina. She completed residency training in Anatomic Pathology at Georgetown University followed by subspecialty fellowship training in molecular diagnostics and experimental pathology.

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Medical Editor:

Roxanne Dryden-Edwards, MD

Roxanne Dryden-Edwards, MD

Dr. Roxanne Dryden-Edwards is an adult, child, and adolescent psychiatrist. She is a former Chair of the Committee on Developmental Disabilities for the American Psychiatric Association, Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland, and Medical Director of the National Center for Children and Families in Bethesda, Maryland.

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The following procedures have been used as alternatives to IVF but are not discussed in detail in this article:

• Gamete intrafallopian transfer (GIFT): Gamate intrafallopian transfer is similar to IVF. It is used when a woman has at least one normal Fallopian tube. Eggs are placed in this tube along with a man's sperm to fertilize there. This accounts for only about 2% of assisted reproductive technology procedures in the US. Some couples opt for this procedure if they object to fertilization that occurs outside the woman's body.
• Zygote intrafallopian transfer (ZIFT): Zygote intrafallopian transfer is tubal embryo transfer in which a woman's eggs are taken from her ovaries, fertilized in the laboratory, and put back in the Fallopian tubes rather than the uterus. ZIFT is even less common than GIFT, making up less than 1.5% of assisted reproductive procedures.
• Embryo cryopreservation (frozen fertilized egg and sperm) is available when more embryos are created than are transferred to the woman's uterus. These can be transferred during a future cycle. In this case a woman would take medications to prepare her uterus to receive the embryos at the appropriate time.

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Infertility Infertility affects about 6.1 million people in the United States, about 10% of men and women of reproductive age. A fertility specialist is usually an obstetri...learn more >>

Pregnancy Pregnancy occurs when an egg is fertilized by a sperm, grows inside a woman's uterus (womb), and develops into a baby. In humans, this process takes about 280 d...learn more >>

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