Can domestic test tube selection be used to select gender?

Although it is said that having a boy or a girl is the same, some families want to know the gender of their child in advance because they want a son or are eager to have a daughter. Families doing in vitro fertilization may also have this requirement. At present, it is technically possible to determine the sex of the fetus, but according to China's laws and ethical principles, it is not possible to artificially select the sex through in vitro fertilization.

(1) Stimulate ovulation: Generally, only one follicle matures in each natural cycle of a normal woman, but this is not enough for in vitro fertilization. In order to obtain multiple eggs, controlled superovulation methods are often used, such as CC/HCG, HMG/HCG, CC/HMG/HCG, GnRH-a/FSH/HCG, etc. to obtain more eggs for use.

(2) Predicting ovulation: To obtain eggs that mature before ovulation, you must first determine the ovulation period. Clinically, the development of follicles can be monitored through basal body temperature measurement, cervical mucus examination, vaginal smear, and mainly B-ultrasound to determine the best time to give hormones to induce ovulation.

(3) Egg collection: When the follicle is mature but has not yet ruptured, the mature follicle is punctured through the abdomen with a needle under laparoscopy or under B-ultrasound monitoring through the vagina to extract the follicle contents and find the oocyte.

(4) Egg culture: The retrieved oocytes are placed in culture medium to further mature the eggs and reach a state similar to that at ovulation.

(5) In vitro fertilization: The husband's semen is obtained under sterile conditions and processed to enable the sperm to penetrate the egg, forming fertilization droplets, which are then added to the culture medium containing the egg. A new cell, the fertilized egg, is formed by the fusion of two pronuclei, and then culture continues. When it divides to 8 to 16 cells, the blastocyst is injected into the fundus of the uterus via a catheter. It is best to transplant 3 to 4 fertilized eggs at a time to increase the success rate of pregnancy after transplantation. The success of blastocyst transplantation depends on the vitality of the fertilized egg itself, the health of the endometrium, and whether there is any damage during the transplantation process.

(6) Post-transplantation treatment: Stay in bed for 24 hours after transplantation, limit activities for 3 to 4 days, inject HCG on the day of egg retrieval, 3 or 6 days after egg retrieval, or receive intramuscular injection of progesterone every day after egg retrieval to reduce early pregnancy miscarriage. Observe the serum HCG level 14 or 16 days after transplantation to determine whether the pregnancy has increased. If the pregnancy is successful, the fetal development is monitored regularly, the pregnancy is treated as high-risk, close observation is carried out, and measures to preserve the pregnancy are taken.