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Catheter
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A fine plastic tube (eg used to put sperm or embryos into the uterus through the cervix)
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Capacitation
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The alteration of sperm during the passage through the female reproductive tract that gives them the capacity to penetrate and fertilize the ovum.
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Cervical insemination
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Putting sperm into the cervix
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Chlamydia
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A sexually transmitted bacteria which may cause tubal disease
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Chromosome
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Structures containing all the inherited information in the cell
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Chromosome abnormalities
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Wrong number of chromosomes or chromosomes with bits missing or with bits in the wrong place
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Chromosome analysis
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Inspection of chromosomes through a microscope
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Clearblue
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Name of a home pregnancy test using urine
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Clearplan
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Name of a home test for ovulation using urine
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Cleavage
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Division of cells in an embryo
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Cleaved embryo
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A fertilized oocyte which has undergone cellular division but at a simpler stage than a blastocyst
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Clinical Pregnancy Rate
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The proportion of on-going pregnancies for every 100 treatment cycles commenced.
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Clomiphene Citrate
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Name of a drug used to induce ovulation or increase the number of eggs ovulated
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Conception
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The fertilization of a woman's egg by a man's sperm to form a zygote.
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Congenital abnormality
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An abnormality present from birth
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Controlled ovarian hyperstimulation (COH)
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Pharmacologic stimulation of the ovaries, generally with gonadotropins and/or clomiphene citrate, with the objective of stimulating the development of multiple follicles and hence retrieval of multiple eggs.
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Corpus luteum
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A special gland that forms on the surface of the ovary at the site of ovulation and produces progesterone during the second half of the menstrual cycle. Its function is necessary to prepare the uterine lining for implantation by the fertilized egg.
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Counselling
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All licensed clinics are required to offer patients counselling, to enable the patient to understand the implications of treatment, to give emotional support and to help the patient cope with the consequences of treatment.
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Cryopreservation
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Maintaining the viability of cells or tissue by storing at very low temperatures (freezing) -- used to preserve and store embryos or gametes (sperm or oocytes).
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Cryoprotectant
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Chemical used to help cells survive freezing
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Culturing (cells)
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Growing cells outside the body
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CVS
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Chorionic Villus Sampling - taking small bits of tissue from the placenta 8-10 weeks into pregnancy
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Cystic Fibrosis
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A disorder of the mucus-secreting glands of the lungs, the pancreas, the mouth and the gastro-intestinal tract and is the commonest serious genetic disease in Caucasian children.
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