Blog Posts in December, 2015

  • "Don't give a load of importance to any one cycle."

    There was a really interesting article published in New York Times this morning. We would like to highlight a really important point of this research study which confirms our approach to IVF treatment. “Some clinicians also believe that women who do not produce any eggs — or produce just two or fewer — after stimulation of the ovaries are less likely to become pregnant via future ...

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  • China Struggles with IVF Demand as One-Child Policy Ends

    News spread fast in October when China officially announced to end one-child policy. Since then we had several internal discussions guessing how it would affect IVF business in China and in the United States. We were guessing that in light of the new policy there would be less pressure to have boy in the family and less demand for gender selection through IVF procedure… but that’s not ...

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  • Canadian study: Lack of age limit for government-funded IVF is costly and ineffective

    A retrospective study of the Quebec pregnancy registry indicated no successful IVF pregnancies in patients > 44 y/o in Canada from 2010-2012. The conclusions from the authors is that IVF in woman> 44 y/o is pointless and expensive. We have been involved with dozens of successful IVF pregnancies in woman older than 44 years (their own eggs, of course). Not many, but enough to show it ...

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  • Japanese IVF

    People.com, among numerous other news sites, recently posted a picture (shown left) that has been getting some attention around the web: http://www.people.com/article/photo-baby-syringe-heart-captures-ivf-struggle-facebook It’s a great image for sure to represent all of the needles and medications that are part of a Traditional IVF protocol. It certainly caught our attention. We thought ...

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  • If it ain't broke, don't fix it : A case of premature ovarian failure, Fragile X, embryo banking, and frozen embryo transfer

    Despite being across the country, a number of patients from my prior IVF center still consult with me regarding their treatment. One of these patients is AD. AD came to me when she was 32 years old. She had been diagnosed with premature ovarian failure (POF) and her last natural period had been 5 years earlier. As with many others who have POF, AD is a carrier of the pre-mutation of the Fragile X ...

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  • Red Herring: Another case of more-than-simply-blocked-tubes and multiple IVF failures

    CK was 38 years old and had been dealing with secondary infertility for many years. She conceived once in the distant past in a prior relationship but terminated that pregnancy. While being treated by a prior physician, Dr. A, CK was diagnosed with blocked fallopian tubes (both sides). Not only were the tubes blocked, the left tube was full of fluid, a condition called “hydrosalpynx.” ...

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  • Less is Best: A case of probable tubal damage, possible endometrium issues, and multiple IVF failures ending in success!

    SW was 38 years old and had never been pregnant before. After a normal workup and multiple failed IUI cycles using a combination of oral and injectable meds, SW was diagnosed with infertility of unknown origin and started IVF treatments. Dr. A, at a very well respected center in San Diego, chose a classic “antagonist” protocol for stimulation but took the “shotgun” ...

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  • Batting 1.000

    Hooray! Our Clomid-only IVF egg retrieval from last week resulted in a Blastocyst! I guess I shouldn’t be too surprised. Our patient is still relatively young (i.e. not yet 40) and, even though Hanabusa IVF is a new center in San Diego, our mother center Hanabusa Women’s Clinic is the second largest center in Japan performing over 8,000 IVF cycles per year. Between my embryologist from ...

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  • Does size matter (needle size that is)?

    We just received follow up from one of our young patients who recently had an egg retrieval. She was one of our Egg Donors, a young woman who donates her eggs to another patient who is having difficulty conceiving because of poor egg quality. Our donor is feeling great! She has had minimal to no discomfort. She had undergone an egg retrieval at another center in the past and she said that this was ...

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  • Finally!

    Finally! After weeks of organization and much anticipation, I was finally able to perform our first Japanese Minimal Stimulation IVF egg retrieval at Hanabusa IVF. I believe this would be the first in the San Diego area. What is Japanese Minimal Stimulation IVF? I am going to save that for next time. Let us continue. A little Valium for nerves. Local anesthesia. Japanese retrieval catheter (which ...

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  • Rational IVF

    The other day, my wife asked why I don’t shorten my stories. I explained to her that these entries were more than stories of inspiration and hope; these stories are also meant to explain and educate. When patients come to me after failing at other centers, I sometimes find myself having difficulty following the logic of prior treatments. At times, I am stunned at the lack of thought placed ...

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  • A Final Graduation (A Case of Premature Ovarian Failure)

    My last days at New Hope were a whirlwind of emotions and many sad goodbyes. Fortunately, one good-bye was a happy one: I was able to graduate AG! AG had a beautiful ultrasound heartbeat on 3 separate occasions and the fetus was growing appropriately, so it was time to move her on to her obstetrician. AG is 36 y/o. If everything goes well this will be her second baby with New Hope. The most ...

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  • Welcome to San Diego

    Hello from San Diego! Leaving New York was bittersweet. I have great memories of the rush and franticness of my younger days but, after almost 25 years and now having two young children, I don’t need that anymore. I need sun, beach and a backyard. I will miss my former colleagues, my staff and my patients, but my colleagues and staff will endure and my patients are in good hands, so on to ...

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