The world's first "test tube baby" arrived in 1978 in the UK. Since then, medically assisted procreation (MAP) has advanced significantly. Today in France, about one in 30 children is born through these techniques.
Medically assisted procreation encompasses clinical and biological techniques where medicine aids conception. Key methods include in vitro fertilization (IVF) and artificial insemination (AI), with AI sometimes linked to gestational surrogacy (GPA).
Gestational surrogacy involves implanting an embryo in a surrogate's uterus, while IVF fertilizes an egg with sperm outside the body—in a lab dish (in vitro).
Louise Brown, the first "test tube baby," celebrated her 42nd birthday on July 25, 2020. France's first was Amandine, born February 24, 1982. These milestones revolutionized infertility treatment, shifting beyond traditional artificial insemination—where donor or partner sperm is placed at the cervix or in the uterus for natural fertilization of the egg.
IVF births have grown steadily, per a June 2018 Populations & Societies report (PDF in French, 4 pages). Since the 1980s, France has seen a 0.5% increase every 7-8 years—a consistent trend, as shown in the graph below.
Currently, 2.5% of children (1 in 40) are from IVF, rising to 3.5% (1 in 30) including AI. In a typical classroom, that's about one child conceived this way.
Research continues: In 2019, UK scientists highlighted benefits of older sperm for healthier offspring traits in reproduction and longevity. In 2017, an Australian startup introduced AI-driven embryo selection to boost IVF success rates.
