IVF Labs

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Pinkcp28

IVF Labs

Post by Pinkcp28 »

I have been told by two medical professionals to leave the current fertility center I am at and go to one that has a better rating on SART (which I just found out existed a couple of days ago). I have been with my fertility center for the last two and a half years. We have done 9 iui's (one positive pregnancy that ended at 7 weeks) and two failed IVF cycles. The last cycle they retrieved 23 eggs, 19 of which were viable and 16 of which fertilized. On day 3 all 16 embryos were healthy and growing on day 5 we had only one embryo left. They sent my husband to a urologist as they thought he had a high level on DNA sperm fragmentation which they believed caused the drop from 16 to 1. His fragmentation came back twice at 5%. He does have 0% normal morphology but we have done ICSI for both IVF cycles so we we're told that eliminates the morphology issue. We are being told by medical practitioners that it is the the quality of the lab we are going to. Our center has a 23% live birth rate per transfer for my age (35-37) I am 36. We have one more IVF cycle covered by insurance and we want to make sure we are getting the best care for it. Any advice on how to go about finding a great IVF lab would be greatly appreciated.
Dr. Wisot
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Posts: 1208
Joined: Fri Oct 14, 2005 11:16 am

Re: IVF Labs

Post by Dr. Wisot »

It is very difficult as a consumer to find the best center in this extremely complex technology.

It would seem easy; just pick the center that has the best success rates in your age group. But success rates are not everything. Centers can "elevate" their success rates by patient selection; only doing "easy" cases. If they push patients who have not had conservative treatments first, their success rates will be higher. If they avoid difficult cases, same effect. Look beyond the success rates like at the number of embryos they transfer, less is better.

Reputation is important as is the length of time the team has been together. Knowledgeable people in the medical community usually know who is best and the best recommendation is from a friend who is in the medical community. It's sad to say but your doctor may refer you to his/her friend, not necessarily the best.

In our book, Conceptions & Misconceptions we devote an entire chapter to picking the right doctor.

I feel for you; this is not easy especially when you have experienced so many disappointments. :cry:

Arthur L. Wisot, M. D.
Reproductive Partners Medical Group
Redondo Beach, California
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