What is the difference between surrogacy and test tube baby?

A woman is one of the most blessed human beings on earth because she can give birth to a baby, but even if she can’t she is still the best because she always is the care giver in a family (most of the times). It is always seen that a woman is always expected to be able to bear child and give an heir to the family she is married into. But what if she is unable to bear a child?

Then are you going to throw her away or get married a second time? Well, these were the available options earlier but with changing times and development of technology, the alternatives for natural birth are also increasing. Now we have options like adoption, surrogacy, IVF, Test Tube babies, so on and so forth.

And in today’s article we are going to have a detailed look at what is surrogacy, what is a test tube baby and the differences between the two.

What is Surrogacy?

Surrogate Pregnancy involves a woman agreeing to bear someone else's child. After the birth of a child, the birth mother gains the right to live and care for the intended parent or parents.

Surrogacy has complex legal and medical measures to be met. It is important to monitor the process, seek professional advice and build support networks.

Well, it does not just here, as there are many different types of Surrogacy as well.

 Altruistic (non-commercial) surrogacy: The birth mother does not receive payment.

Although some states allow reasonable reimbursement of medical expenses for the mother of the respondent.

 Traditional Surrogacy: The surrogate mother donates her egg, which is fertilized by the sperm of the father. Since the baby is naturally the surrogate mother's child, there may be future issues related to the child's future right to information about his or her identity. Thus Traditional Surrogacy may be banned in most states and territories. Therefore, it is also possible to practice traditional surrogacy through an overseas clinic.

 Commercial Surrogacy: This includes the birth mother who receives payment or material gain in favour of giving birth. It is illegal to pay a third party company to arrange for acquisition and advertising to the adoptive parent or the authorized parent is usually not permitted.

While we are talking about Surrogacy it is also extremely important to talk about Gestational Surrogacy which is also called as IVF (In Vitro Fertilization).

Gestational Surrogacy- The procedure called “In Vitro Fertilization” (IVF) now makes it possible to collect eggs from the mother (or donor egg), fertilized by sperm from the father (or donor sperm), and implant the foetus in her mother's womb. The surrogate mother then carries the baby until it is born.

They have no genetics in the baby because it was not their egg that was used. The Gestational surrogates are called as "birth mother" but logically the birth mother is still the woman whose egg was fertilized for the process.

In the U.S., Gestational surrogacy is not so legal. That is because both target parents have genetic responsibilities toward the child. As a result, pregnancy is more common than the traditional healer. And about 750 babies are born each year through the process of

Gestational Surrogacy.

This also bring us to view why women opt for Surrogate Pregnancy and there can many reasons for one to do so, but some of the most common ones are:

 Medical problems with one's uterus.

 One had a hysterectomy that removed their uterus.

 Circumstances that make pregnancy impossible or dangerous for the woman, such as severe heart disease.

When one thinks about opting for methods other than the natural ones, then they also wish to know about the cost for the same, so let’s look at how much does the process of Surrogacy in general?

The cost of surrogacy is about Rs 13 to 14 lakhs depending on the type of surrogacy (self- sustaining egg or donor egg surrogacy) which involves 3 attempts.

Now that we all have understood what is Surrogacy, its types and why women opt for it, let’s have a look at what is a Test Tube baby?

What is a Test Tube Baby?

Test-tube baby is a product of successful human reproduction that does not results from sexual intercourse between a man and a woman and instead uses medical interventions that exploit both egg and sperm cells for successful fertilization. The term was originally used to refer to infants born from the earliest use of the sperm and is now extended to refer to infants born using in vitro fertilization (IVF), the practice of fertilizing an egg outside a woman&body.

Now let’s look at the process of making a Test Tube Baby.

 Hormonal therapy is given - Before collecting eggs from the mother, she is first given hormonal injections, gonadotropin to allow the follicles to mature. The final stage is delivered by injecting HCG for 36 hours before collecting eggs.

 Collection of eggs in the ovary- Under the effect of sedation, the mother's eggs are fetched by doctors. Shortly thereafter, the resulting eggs are taken to a laboratory.

 Sperm is detected- On the same day for egg collection. The father or donor is requested to provide a sperm sample.

 Fertilization of eggs and sperm- A mixture of eggs and sperm is made and finally placed inside an incubator. The doctor also examines the growth of the embryo inside the incubator.

 Foetus Transmission- The embryos are eventually transferred to the mother's uterus. It is noted that the environment of the uterus adapts to the growth of sperm. The uterine lining should be hardened, and in doing so, progesterone is advised.

And last but not the least let’s have a look why shall a couple or a woman opt for having a Test Tube Baby, instead of having a normal pregnancy.

 Damaged fallopian tube

 Endometriosis

 Problem with ovulation

 Tubectomy

 Low sperm count

 Genetic problems

 Unknown reason for infertility

What is the cost of having a Test Tube Baby?

The cost of treatment of the test tube can range from Rs. 75,000 - 2, 50,000 depending on the person and the birth control pills used. Although this may slightly vary from hospital to hospital, but the aforementioned price seems to be general price in India, if one wishes to have a Test Tube Baby.

And now we can easily make out the differences between the two that is Surrogacy and Test Tube Baby. As we all know that financial constraints are one of the most important things to look out for whenever one decides to take huge step and pregnancy procedures like

Surrogacy and Test Tube are costly, but when compared among the two Test Tube Baby seems like an affordable option rather than the Surrogacy.

While Surrogacy includes a third party, the same is not the case for Test Tube baby, thus having a Test Tube baby seems like a more private affair rather than opting for Surrogacy.

And last hut not the least, one of the common things that both the procedures have, is the reason why a couple or a woman opts for either of the procedure to have a baby instead of the natural methods, which is having some kind of physical/health problem.

Ref: Surrogacy | Pregnancy Birth and Baby (pregnancybirthbaby.org.au)

Surrogate Mothers: What It Is and How Does Surrogacy Work (webmd.com)

Test-Tube Baby | The Embryo Project Encyclopedia (asu.edu)

Test tube baby process: Everything you need to know - Dr. Sowjanya Aggarwal

(drsowjanyaaggarwal.com)