a procedure for assisting conception, suitable only for women with healthy Fallopian tubes. In over 50% of women in whom infertility is diagnosed, the tubes are normal but some other factor, such as endometriosis, prevents conception. Using needle aspiration, under laparoscopic or ultrasonic guidance, ova are removed from the ovary. After being mixed with the partner's spermatozoa, they are introduced into a Fallopian tube, where fertilization takes place. The fertilized ovum can subsequently become implanted in the uterus.
Medical dictionary. 2011.