Assisted Reproductive Technology: Where did the Journey Begin, and where are we Today – A 40-year History

Abstract

Over the last four decades, significant developments have occurred within the field of assisted reproduction, initially sparked by the birth of Louise Brown in 1978, who will be forever be known as the first human baby born through in-vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment in the world. The first IVF cycle was based on a nonstimulated ovulatory cycle, in which the oocyte retrieval procedure was performed laparoscopically. IVF, however, was already being performed experimentally in animals, namely rabbits, as early as the 1980’s, with the first IVF human pregnancy reported as early as 1973, but unfortunately resulting in a first trimester loss [1].