Introducing In Vitro Fertilization In Pakistan For The First Time By Dr. Rashid Latif Khan

Dr. Rashid Latif inaugurated the first in vitro fertilization center named “Life’’ in Pakistan for the very first time in 1984. However, he successfully produced a healthy test tube baby after his five years of struggle in 1989.

What Is IVF?

IVF is a procedure in which a male’s sperm fertilizes a female’s egg outside of their bodies in the laboratory. When fertilization does, the egg successfully is implanted back into the female’s uterus, where the development of the fetus occurs naturally. A baby is born after nine months, just like a natural procedure. IVF can be performed for infertile couples because of their various deformities which are affecting their natural process of producing babies like fallopian tube damage, tubal factor, male factor infertility, age-related infertility, anovulation, and decreased sperm count, among many others.   

History Of IVF In Pakistan

When Dr. Rashid planned to introduce IVF in Pakistan, at that time, there were not enough resources and awareness of IVF in the whole world. He wrote a letter to Australia requesting them for training in IVF procedures as the world’s every 3rd test-tube baby was born in Australia at that time. After completing his training in Australia, he returned to Pakistan and established the first IVF center in Lahore, Pakistan. Dr. Rashid said he did not have to search for such couples who wished to have babies through IVF as he had many such volunteers in his surroundings.

When Dr. Latif performed the first IVF on a couple, he failed as it turned out to be an ectopic pregnancy (which is a pregnancy in an area other than the uterus) that was aborted later on.

After his constant efforts for five years, he produced a healthy test-tube baby on 6 July 1989. That baby’s parents were not agreed to reveal about their test tube baby’s birth, so Dr. Latif delivered five babies at the same time in his hospital to hide the baby’s reality from the media.

Criticism Faced By Dr. Rashid Latif

 When Pakistani media shared the news of introducing IVF in Pakistan by Dr. Latif, at that time, ten famous Islamic scholars of Pakistan stood against this procedure, calling it ‘’illegal’’ or ‘’haram’’. Dr. Latif did not respond to them because his first experiment was not successful, but when he performed IVF for the second time, he went to all the scholars who were against him and explained to them the whole procedure of IVF by giving the example of heart bypass surgery. He convinced them that if the heart’s deformity can be removed by bypass surgery, then why not any deformity in a female uterus be removed by IVF. Anyhow he was able to convince all the scholars.

One In Every Five Couples In Pakistan Suffers From Infertility

According to National Institute of Population studies, around 22% of couples suffer from infertility. In one of his interviews, Dr. Latif said that although the chances of infertility are equal in both males and females, unfortunately, females are always criticized in this regard, and even males are reluctant to get tested for infertility. Dr. Latif always advised the couples who come to them that firstly males should go for the test as male fertility tests are cheaper, painless, and their results come out quickly, while in females’ case, tests are expensive, painful, and results take time. 

Dr. Latif also admits that the IVF procedure is not very efficient; now, many couples go abroad for this procedure.

Lack Of IVF Monitoring In Pakistan

Although IVF has been introduced in Pakistan for 37 years, there is no official government data available on how many babies are born through this process, and IVF centers have been established till now in Pakistan. However, according to a nongovernment survey, more than 10,000 babies are born through IVF, and around 200 IVF centers are working in Pakistan. 

Almost one thousand couples go for their treatment at Pakistan’s largest IVF center, ‘Life.’ Still, despite this, there is no system of regular supervision of these centers by the government, and no legislation has been enacted in this regard.