What is intracytoplasmic sperm injection?
Intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) is an IVF procedure in which a single healthy sperm is injected directly into the egg. ICSI is useful when the man’s sperm count is very low or many sperm are abnormal or immotile. A tiny injection pipette is used to pass the sperm through the zona pellucida (outside layer) of the egg into its ooplasm (central substance). In general, ICSI is performed on several eggs. Once they have been fertilized, they are replaced inside the woman’s uterus after a period of about 48 hours. [Back to Top] What is gamete intrafallopian transfer? Gamete intrafallopian transfer (GIFT) is an ART procedure in which the egg and sperm (gametes) are placed together within the fallopian tubes. GIFT requires prior, hormone-induced “super stimulation” of the woman’s ovaries to produce mature eggs. The eggs then are retrieved from the woman by laparotomy, a surgical incision through the abdomen. After a number of mature eggs have been collected, they are combined with sperm
