The issue of abandoned embryos may be the most difficult issue that arises from using IVF. It seems impossible that given the immense effort and sacrifice IVF patients make to produce embryos that any of these embryos could ever be abandoned. But about 5% of embryos created with the best intentions to make a baby [...]

I had a patient ask me, “Do RE staff think we are all crazy?”. Of course not!- was my quick answer but then I got to thinking about an extension of that question. How can you get the best care from your nursing staff?  Having sat at the lunch table with  ART nurses for many [...]

Welcome everyone from “I Com Leave We” . I decided to participate in the week-long comment-leaving party as a kind of community service and to reach out to other bloggers. I am new to blogging as I am sure you realize if you noticed my two *redundant Home tabs!! Apparently, I have redundant code somewhere [...]

When the economy is in a downturn, the birth rate declines because people put off having children in uncertain times. At least that’s been the historical trend. Postponing fertility treatments is not an appealing option if you know your biological clock is ticking, so how do you pay for it all-especially now when money is [...]

One of my readers asked me to comment on day 3 versus day 5 embryo transfers. This is one of those topics that embryologists have heated debates about because both sides can come up with evidence supporting their clinical approach. My disclaimer is that I have always favored day 5 culture of embryos to the [...]

Yes! Nutrition can affect fertility but there is no magic fertility diet. Assuming that you don’t suffer from celiac disease or polycystic ovarian syndrome which have underlying metabolic disorders to begin with, most of us will optimize our fertility by eating (in moderation) a healthy diet which keeps us somewhere near our ideal weight. Extreme [...]

The European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology (ESHRE) made IVF news last week when Dr Peter Sjoblom, unit manager of Nurture, the Nottingham University IVF clinic at Queen’s Medical Centre (Nottingham, UK), and his colleagues reported that in vitro maturation (IVM)  of human eggs before fertilization resulted in a higher incidence of overweight babies, [...]