Tubal Ovum Transfer - TOT

The acronyms, IVF (In Vitro Fertilization), GIFT (Gamete Intra-Fallopian Transfer), and TOT (Tubal Ovum Transfer), may be confusing when trying to differentiate one from the other. In all three ART procedures, your ovaries are stimulated with medication to produce mature eggs, which are then removed from your ovaries just prior to ovulation.

TOT is a specific modification to GIFT that is accepted by the Catholic Church, pioneered by Dr. McLaughlin and published in The Lancet nearly two decades ago. By using a perforated silastic condom, the sperm is collected through intercourse. As in GIFT, your eggs are retrieved and replaced into your Fallopian tubes, with the sperm separated by an air bubble. It is available to those who may have a specific moral objection to the "in vitro" laboratory fertilization process required with IVF.