Posts Tagged ‘conceiving a child’
Wednesday, November 16th, 2011
Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Children’s Center have been studying the long-term consequences of pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) and have found that repeated bouts of the disease can double a woman’s risk of infertility.
PID is a complication of sexually transmitted infections and is marked by the inflammation of the reproductive organs. It can cause chronic pelvic pain and ectopic pregnancy. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, PID affects more than 800,000 women in the U.S. each year, and one in 10 of those women develops infertility.
The new research conducted by those at Johns Hopkins explored whether long-term effects of PID had changed in recent years along with changes in PID-causing pathogens and new treatments. The research showed, however, that long-term effects of PID are still serious when it comes to a woman’s fertility. In the study, women with recurrent PID were nearly twice as likely to report infertility as women who never had another PID flare-up after initial PID treatment.
If you’ve had recurrent PID episodes, there might be damage to your reproductive organs that is getting in the way of you conceiving a child. Contact us today to schedule an appointment to discuss your unique health situation and your fertility treatment options.
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Tags: Bouts, Centers For Disease Control, Centers For Disease Control And Prevention, Chronic Pelvic Pain, conceiving a child, Disease Control And Prevention, Dr. Hearns, Dr. Munabi, Ectopic Pregnancy, Fertility Treatment, Flare Ups, Health Situation, Infertility, Johns Hopkins, PA Infertility, Pelvic Inflammatory Disease, Pelvic Inflammatory Disease Pid, Philadelphia Infertility, Reading, Reproductive Organs, Reproductive Science Institute, Rsi, S Center, sexually transmitted infections, Study Women, Term Consequences, Those Women, Treatment Options, Unique Health, Wyomissing
Posted in Research and Studies | No Comments »
Wednesday, November 9th, 2011
With so many in the media and out in the world talking so openly about fertility treatments these days, some acronyms and catch phrases are becoming commonplace. In particular, many people recognize the acronym IVF and the procedure it stands for — in-vitro fertilization.
But IVF is not the only kind of with fertility treatments available — not by a long shot! There are other avenues for couples to take in their journey toward conceiving a child with medical assistance. One such procedure, called intrauterine insemination, helps scores of people who are having trouble conceiving. It is less expensive than IVF, though its success rate is lower. Here’s a little bit more about IUI:
- How does IUI work? In the IUI procedure, a catheter containing washed sperm is inserted through the cervix. The sperm is then pushed into the uterus in the hopes of fertilization with an ovum.
- When does IUI take place? IUI is typically scheduled within 6 hours (before or after) of a woman’s ovulation. (hCG injections may be used to ensure ovulation.) Timing is critical because sperm can only last 24-72 hours and are typically considered less viable after 24 hours.
- Does it hurt? Most women report very little discomfort during the procedure.
- Who is IUI most suited for? Since the IUI procedure manipulates the placement of sperm, IUI may be very effective in cases of male infertility. Also, since the IUI procedure accesses the uterus directly, it may be a good choice for women who suffer from cervical mucus problems.
- What is the success rate of IUI? Success rates vary quite a bit. Some studies report the success rate to be as little as 4-8%; others claim it is closer to 20%.
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Tags: Catch Phrases, Catheter, Cervical Mucus, Cervix, conceiving a child, Dr. Hearns, Dr. Munabi, Fertility Treatment, Fertility Treatments, Hcg Injections, in vitro fertilization, Intrauterine Insemination, IUI, Iui Procedure, Iui Success Rates, IVF, Male Infertility, Medical Assistance, mucus problems, Ovulation, Ovulation Timing, ovum, PA Infertility, Philadelphia Infertility, Reading, sperm, Success Rate, Twitter, Uterus, Vitro Fertilization, Wyomissing
Posted in IUI | 1 Comment »
Monday, October 24th, 2011
If you’re a woman and you’ve been having difficulty getting pregnant after trying for at least six months on a regular basis, you may want to consider the possibility that you could have polycystic ovary symptom (PCOS).
PCOS has been shown to affect fertility in women by interfering with hormones. Consequently, menstruation and ovulation may become irregular, leading to infertility or challenges in naturally conceiving a child without fertility treatments.
Ironically, many women with PCOS do not realize they have the condition. After all, PCOS symptoms can easily “mimic” ordinary experiences for many females. These may include menstruation changes, trouble with pregnancy, ovarian cysts (benign) and skin problems.
Because infertility or problems with fertility are often reasons for diagnosis, most women with PCOS are in their 20s and 30s. However, some teenagers have been known to discover that they have the condition.
For fertility specialists like the Philadelphia and Reading, Pennsylvania area’s Reproductive Science Institute (RSI), discovering PCOS can help greatly in deciding upon the best fertility treatments for a female patient and, if applicable, her partner. PCOS can be addressed with a number of medical interventions, including birth control pills, progesterone pills and medications.
The good news is that PCOS is quite treatable and can be overcome for women and couples who seek to become parents. If you’re interested in finding out more about PCOS and fertility treatments, contact RSI at your convenience to set up an appointment with one of our team.
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Tags: Birth Control, Birth Control Pills, conceiving a child, Cysts, Dr. Hearns, Dr. Munabi, Female Patient, Fertility Specialists, Fertility Treatment, Fertility Treatments, Hormones, Infertility, Medical Interventions, Menstruation And Ovulation, Ovary, PA Infertility, Pcos Symptoms, Pennsylvania Area, Philadelphia Infertility, Polycystic Ovary, Progesterone, Reading, Reading Pennsylvania, Reproductive Science Institute, Skin Problems
Posted in female infertility, Pcos | No Comments »
Friday, September 10th, 2010
If you’re a male and you and your partner are having trouble conceiving a child naturally, the blame may lay with one of your habits — smoking.
As a recent WebMD article notes:
What appears to be happening is that smoking-damaged sperm lose much of their ability to fight off destructive oxygen molecules — free radicals — in the seminal fluid. Interestingly, in addition to making spermcells more sensitive to oxidative stress, smoking itself increases the concentration of free radicals in the seminal fluid.
The upshot of this finding is that the damage to sperm appears to be temporary. This means if a male quits smoking, within several months he can, for all intents and purposes, reverse the fertility issues caused by smoking.
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Tags: conceiving a child, Concentration, Fertility Issues, free radicals, Intents And Purposes, Miracles, oxidative stress, Oxygen Molecules, Quit Smoking, Rsi, Seminal Fluid, Sperm Cells, Upshot, Webmd Article
Posted in Male Infertility | 1 Comment »
Wednesday, January 13th, 2010
Egg donation is a very personal choice many individuals and couples make when seeking assistance in conceiving a child. Because every egg donor program varies from clinic to clinic, it’s important to make certain that yours gives you the most options.
What are some of the options you’ll want to investigate? Consider these, for starters:
- Diversified Egg Donor Listing. You deserve as many options as you need, so it’s critical to pick an egg donor program that offers you choices such as the ethnic diversity of the egg donor (including African-American, Jewish heritage, etc.)
- Experienced Medical Team. Believe it or not, all reproductive science specialists are not quite as “specialized” as you might think. Thus, it’s critical to find a team that has plenty of expertise in this area.
- Young Egg Donors. Many clinics will allow donors up to 35+; at RSI, we consider age 32 the “cap” for our egg donors.
- Extensive Egg Donor Profiles. You should be able to find out quite a bit about your egg donor at your reproductive science clinic. If you feel you’re not getting enough information, it’s probably an indication that you’re at the wrong place.
- No Waiting List. Better clinics have no egg donor waiting list. That means you have fewer delays in reaching your goal of a healthy baby.
- Couples/Individuals Choose Egg Donor. You should be able to choose the egg donor you prefer, and RSI supports that wish. However, it’s important to note that some clinics will want to choose for you.
- Competitive Price. As always, you need to work with a reproductive science specialist who understands that fertility treatments should be priced competitively.
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Tags: American Heritage, American Jewish, Cap, Choices, conceiving a child, Couples, Couples Seeking, Donor Egg, Donor Profiles, Egg Donation, Egg Donor Program, Egg Donors, Ethnic Diversity, Fertility Treatments, Jewish Heritage, Medical Team, Miracles, Reproductive Science, Rsi, Science Specialist, Science Specialists, Starters, Waiting List
Posted in Egg Donation | 1 Comment »
Tuesday, September 1st, 2009
Surrogacy. It’s in the news more now than ever; however, you may be wondering about the ins and outs of this non-traditional method of conceiving a child.
To help you get a better understanding of what surrogacy is… and isn’t… we’ve compiled a few facts about the process. As always, to receive more information, contact a reputable fertility clinic for a consultation.
- Surrogacy is legal in the U.S., but couples are not legally allowed to pay the surrogate above and beyond medical expenses. (In other words, a woman cannot become a “professional” surrogate in the sense that it’s an occupation.)
- In India, surrogacy has recently been accepted as a method of “income” for poorer women. Unfortunately, regulations are limited; thus, U.S. couples who hire an Indian surrogate may not be assured of the safety of the child or the responsibility of the surrogate.
- Surrogacy can take shape in one of two ways: 1) the surrogate can be artificially inseminated with the father’s sperm or a donor’s sperm; or 2) the surrogate can have a fertilized embryo (from the biological parents or from donors) transferred into her womb.
- The safest way of finding a responsible, healthy surrogate is through a fertility clinic.
- Costs for surrogacy can range widely and should be taken into consideration by potential parents. Traditional insurance does not cover surrogacy.
- Most women who are accepted as surrogates by fertility clinics have had at least one child of their own.
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Tags: biological parents, conceiving a child, Conception, donor's sperm, donors, fertility clinic, fertilized embryo, medical expenses, sperm, sperm donor, surrogacy, surrogacy facts, Surrogate, womb
Posted in surrogacy | 1 Comment »
