Assisted reproductive technology in developing countries: why should we care?

Abstract

Although the provision of expensive ART services in resource-poor countries might appear to be incongruous, nevertheless, the number of ART clinics in such settings is on the rise. For example, in Latin America, the first baby conceived after IVF was born in 1984; by 1998, 84 centers were submitting data to the Latin American Registry (1). Similarly, in Egypt, where IVF was introduced in the late 1980s, at least 35 clinics currently provide a range of ART services (2). Since 1981, private clinics in India have offered ART procedures including IVF and intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), and 60 clinics have been registered by the Ministry of Health (3). China has also experienced a growth in infertility services since the early 1990s (4).