IVF: Are 3 Embryos Too Many to Transfer?
Source — WebMD
Transferring more than two embryos during an IVF cycle is a dangerous practice that does not improve a woman's chances of delivering a baby, a European study finds.
For men and women who yearn for children and try unsuccessfully to conceive, sometimes for years, fertility problems can be devastating. In recent decades many technologies have been developed, such as in vitro fertilization, that help people conceive a child much more successfully.
Inactive lifestyle linked to erectile dysfunction
Source — 121doc Health News
Being healthy and young might not be the only incentives for a great sex life, as a new study suggests that leading a sedentary lifestyle can heighten the risk of erection problems in otherwise healthy men.
According to a report recently published in The Journal of Sexual Medicine, a team of experts from Emory University, Atlanta screened 78 men aged 18-40 for quality of sexual function. The research team was spearheaded by Wayland Hsiao, MD.
High levels of BPA cause sperm problems, study finds
Source — USA TODAY
For the first time, a study in humans suggests that a controversial, estrogen-like chemical in plastic may be related to conditions that reduce men's fertility.
Men with higher levels of BPA, or bisphenol A, were two to four times more likely than others to have problems with sperm quality and quantity, the study shows.
New embryo test to improve IVF success rate Source — IVF.net
Researchers at Oxford University have developed a test that may help to improve IVF success rates by checking the health of embryos.
The team, led by Dr Dagan Wells, has apparently developed a test which checks embryos during IVF for abnormal numbers of chromosomes. They tested a few cells taken from early human embryos, each of which should contain 23 pairs of chromosomes. With more or less than this, embryos can fail to develop normally.
Sperm counts drop out near laptops using WiFi
Source — IVF.net
Ejaculated sperm has been shown to be significantly damaged by prolonged exposure to a WiFi connected laptop. A study, published in the journal Fertility and Sterility, found that after four hours of exposure there was a significant decrease in sperm motility and an increase in sperm DNA fragmentation.
'Our data suggest that the use of a laptop computer wirelessly connected to the Internet and positioned near the male reproductive organs may decrease human sperm quality', said lead researcher Dr Conrado Avendaño, from Argentina's Nascentis Centre for Reproductive Medicine. 'At present we do not know whether this effect is induced by all laptop computers connected by WiFi to the Internet or what use conditions heighten this effect'.
When it comes to conceiving a child, there are lots of things that can go wrong—sperm allergies, poor egg quality, and ineffective sperm. Of the approximately one in 10 couples who are infertile, it has been estimated that male factors alone contribute to 30 percent of these cases.
GSN Races to Improve Prenatal Tests for Genetic Conditions
In 2003, Matthew Rabinowitz's sister, then 32, gave birth to a baby boy with Down syndrome, who died six days later. While pregnant, she had routine tests for possible problems -- blood screening and an ultrasound -- but they failed to detect the extra chromosome that causes the condition.
Laparoscopic excision surgery for endometriosis frees patients from chronic pain and complications
October 2011 — Almost 10 million American women of childbearing age are affected by chronic pelvic pain, gastrointestinal and urinary tract difficulties and infertility due to endometriosis, a strange condition, in which cells normally forming the lining of the uterus (endometrium) start colonizing other organs and tissues beyond the uterus.
Improving IVF success - increasing uterine expression of developmental genes
AUGUST 2011 — New research published online in Developmental Cell indicates that higher expression of certain developmental genes at precise times in the uterus might improve pregnancy rates from in vitro fertilization-embryo transfers (IVF-ET). So far, these rates remain low at around 30%.
July 2011 — Experts say they have found a way to avoid the higher risk of twins through IVF without reducing the success rate. Internationally, clinics often transfer more than one embryo per IVF cycle to boost the odds of it working.
But this is riskier for mother and baby and some governments, including the UK, recommend single embryo transfer.
July 2011 — Egg freezing, which has been most commonly performed on cancer patients before chemotherapy hampers their reproductive options, is growing in popularity for women who have been too busy with their professions or too particular about a mate to have a baby in their 20s or early 30s.
Fertility Specialists of Houston Selects Ultrasonix Systems for its Four Centers
November 02, 2011 - Richmond, British Columbia - Fertility Specialists of Houston has been using SonixTouch systems from Ultrasonix Medical Corporation for the past six years. This reproductive medicine center now has 14 Ultrasonix ultrasound systems in its four locations in the Houston area.
Giving up Smoking as soon as Pregnancy is Confirmed Averts the Adverse Birth Outcomes Associated with Tobacco
JULY 2011 — Scientists have shown for the first time in a large population study that mothers' stopping smoking around the time of getting pregnant can prevent the harmful effects of tobacco on their babies' growth. Results from a study of over 50 000 pregnancies revealed that women who gave up smoking when their pregnancy was confirmed gave birth to babies with a similar birthweight to those born to mothers who had never smoked, Professor Nick Macklon, from the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University of Southampton, UK, told the annual conference of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology today (Wednesday).
Increased Celiac Disease Prevalence in Women with Unexplained Infertility
AUGUST 2011 — A recent study demonstrated increased rates of celiac disease in women who present with unexplained infertility. Published in the May-June 2011 issue of The Journal of Reproductive Medicine, the study evaluated 191 female patients presenting with infertility. Each participant underwent serologic screening for celiac disease as well as routine infertility testing. The 4 patients who had positive serum test results were advised to seek evaluation with a gastroenterologist. All 4 patients were confirmed to have celiac disease. They then underwent nutritional counseling to change over to a gluten-free diet.
AUGUST 2011 — Current estimates of the impact of chemotherapy on women's reproductive health are too low, according to a University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) study. The researchers say their analysis of the age-specific, long-term effects of chemotherapy provides new insights that will help patients and clinicians make more informed decisions about future reproductive options, such as egg harvesting.
Cochrane Review Finds Little Evidence Aspirin Affects IVF
AUGUST 2011 — There is insufficient evidence to suggest that taking aspirin during IVF increases a woman's chances of conceiving, according to the latest Cochrane Systematic Review.
Researchers gathered data from 13 independent trials and compared the effect of aspirin versus placebo on live birth, pregnancy and miscarriage rates in women undergoing IVF. They did not find evidence that any of the three rates were altered among women taking aspirin.
SEPTEMBER 2011 — Researchers have discovered a molecule present on the outer surface of a human egg that binds sperm and eggs together before fertilisation. Understanding this mechanism may help people with previously unexplained fertility problems.
'The details we've discovered here fill in a huge gap in our knowledge of fertility and we hope they will ultimately help many of those people who currently cannot conceive', said Professor Anne Dell of Imperial College London, who was involved in the study.
Dr. George Grunert will be hosting a Resolve Teleseminar on the unique challenges associated with secondary infertility.
March 3rd at 8:00 PM CST
Click here to register now for this complimentary special event.
Cancer survivors can get pregnant, save child from same fate
HOUSTON (KTRK) - Imagine having cancer at 29, then finding you have a cancer gene that's likely to passed on to your children. In what's believed to be one of the first cases of its kind, we have the story of a young cancer patient and how she kept her fertility - and spared her baby - from carrying her cancer gene.
Today, couples experiencing fertility challenges have numerous treatment options and physicians to choose from. We recognize that fertility and having a child are among a couple’s most basic personal desires.
Fertility Specialists of Houston
