Test tube baby is a term commonly used for babies born after being conceived outside the body. In normal pregnancy conception occurs when a sperm meets an ovum and fertilizes it inside the mother’s body. The fertilized ovum then implants in the wall of the uterus for the continuation of pregnancy. In cases where problems exist, in vitro fertilization offers a way out.
For in vitro fertilization, the woman is given hormones that cause her ovary to release many ova instead of the usual single ovum. These ova are carefully removed from her body and maintained on nutritive medium in a glass dish. They are then fertilized by sperms taken from either her husband or a donor. Upto three of the fertilized ova are then implanted in the womb of either the woman herself or that of a surrogate mother who bears the fetus to term.