One of the reasons I felt compelled to move from straight OB/Gyn work to reproductive endocrinology-infertility (REI) is because of the constant advances in science. I find it exciting to apply techniques that have developed along a continuum from creative brainstorming on how to meet patients' fertility challenges all the way through validation in labs and clinics.
I'm heading to Denver this week with some of my Houston Fertility Center staff to attend the 66th Annual Meeting of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine. ASRM is always a great place to catch up with colleagues from around the world and hear about the latest ways to treat our patients. This year promises to be even more enjoyable as we'll be honoring two pioneers of IVF, Dr. Howard Jones, who performed America's first IVF procedure, and Professor Robert Edwards, who recently was awarded the 2010 Nobel Prize in medicine for his development of IVF.
Bestowing accolades on esteemed professionals is just part of the reason for gathering. More importantly, I look forward to returning to Houston Fertility Center with new ideas to share with patients on clearing their family-building hurdles. Sometimes, even a simple treatment can be years in the making. Once new technology is available, a whole new group of once-infertile men and women can find themselves parents, and that's why I do what I do.
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Friday, October 1, 2010
When It Comes to Cancer, We're All On the Same Team
Did you know that many women who survive cancer are unable to have children later? That's because life-saving cancer treatments can result in complete sterility. Fortunately, cancer survivors are increasingly speaking out about what they want out of life after illness. I've been privileged to offer these women fertility-sparing options so they can choose life both ways.
This Saturday, October 2nd, one of my sons is running in the 2010 Komen Houston Race for the Cure. A couple of years ago, I spoke to a gathering of women who form the Education Committee of the Susan G. Komen for the Cure Houston, the nation's premiere advocacy and research organization. The questions from this particularly well-informed audience led me to realize that more general public education is needed.
Cancer survival increases steadily. Fertility treatments to allow survivors to become parents is available. What is still slowly developing is a pipeline of patient information and referral. Too many women find themselves on the infertile side of cancer treatment asking why they hadn't heard of fertility preservation before it was too late.
The Komen Foundation has funded great strides in research to help women survive cancer and go on to have fulfilled lives. I urge you to do what you can to continue supporting their mission. And spread the word yourself to friends affected by cancer: fertility preservation is not experimental science. It is medical care that is currently available.
This Saturday, October 2nd, one of my sons is running in the 2010 Komen Houston Race for the Cure. A couple of years ago, I spoke to a gathering of women who form the Education Committee of the Susan G. Komen for the Cure Houston, the nation's premiere advocacy and research organization. The questions from this particularly well-informed audience led me to realize that more general public education is needed.
Cancer survival increases steadily. Fertility treatments to allow survivors to become parents is available. What is still slowly developing is a pipeline of patient information and referral. Too many women find themselves on the infertile side of cancer treatment asking why they hadn't heard of fertility preservation before it was too late.
The Komen Foundation has funded great strides in research to help women survive cancer and go on to have fulfilled lives. I urge you to do what you can to continue supporting their mission. And spread the word yourself to friends affected by cancer: fertility preservation is not experimental science. It is medical care that is currently available.
Monday, August 16, 2010
Fertility Drug Company Offers IVF Miracles Education Funding
Once you've finally cleared your fertility hurdles to have that miracle baby, life's little related expenses start adding up fast. Educational costs aren't far behind those first birthday parties (and by the way, the staff of Houston Fertility Center really loves those party invitations!)
Since 2004, Ferring, manufacturer of fertility medications, has offered a chance at getting a little help to fund your child's academic needs. Houston Fertility Center patients who used Bravelle or Menopur can enter their essay in the My Little Miracle contest by December 31, 2010. This year's theme: If I Knew Then What I Know Now. The prizes: education funds of up to $10,000!
All the details can be found here, where you can also read the previous winners' entries for inspiration.
I'm honored to know my patients' miracle stories first-hand. I know some of them will make outstanding entries in the Ferring My Little Miracle contest.
Since 2004, Ferring, manufacturer of fertility medications, has offered a chance at getting a little help to fund your child's academic needs. Houston Fertility Center patients who used Bravelle or Menopur can enter their essay in the My Little Miracle contest by December 31, 2010. This year's theme: If I Knew Then What I Know Now. The prizes: education funds of up to $10,000!
All the details can be found here, where you can also read the previous winners' entries for inspiration.
I'm honored to know my patients' miracle stories first-hand. I know some of them will make outstanding entries in the Ferring My Little Miracle contest.
Monday, July 26, 2010
Kneads Houston Brings Fertility Massage to Houston Fertility Center
You'll never hear me suggest that a fertility-challenged woman should "just relax"! There definitely are connections, though, between how a woman's body handles daily stress and how her reproductive system functions.
The mind-body connection to fertility is no longer new information. What IS new are the approaches to helping women find ways to relieve stress, soothe their bodies, and thereby enhance their ability to get pregnant.
Also new: Houston Fertility Center's connection with Kneads Houston. I asked Magen Weishut to talk a little about the services available to HFC patients:
What do you think about the connection between stress, fertility, and massage?
Fertility and pregnancy can be very stressful, and massage can significantly decrease your anxiety level. High stress levels alter signals to the brain's hormone center. As a result, the brain may not send out the reproductive hormones necessary to tell the ovaries when to release an egg, delaying ovulation.
Since stress has been shown to interfere with getting pregnant, it makes sense that reducing stress, through massage, improves odds of conceiving.
Is this a special 'kind' of massage for fertility?
The main goal of fertility massage is to get the full body relaxed, so the body can function at a more efficient rate. Fertility massage focuses on cleansing the body, enhancing the blood, opening the breath, and relaxing and integrating, respectively.
From the clients point of view, the main difference between a massage they may have had before and what they will recieve with us is massage of the abdomen. Massaging of the abdomen helps the circulation to the ovaries, uterus, and other organs.
The specialized therapists from Kneads Houston will see our patients either at Houston Fertility Center locations or home or office -- just ask!
Friday, July 9, 2010
European Women Happy to Freeze Eggs for Future
According to two studies presented at the annual meeting of the European Society of Human Reproduction & Embryology (ESHRE), European women are embracing the idea of egg freezing as a means of having more reproductive control over their lives.
A small Belgian study of women average age 38 years found that half of them planned to freeze their eggs to lessen the pressure they feel to find the best parenting partner. Most foresaw using their eggs for conception after age 40.
A larger study in the UK saw eight in 10 medical students would be willing to freeze their eggs so that career growth could continue to take a front seat.
Women in the U.S. are also warming up to the idea of using assisted reproductive technology even when infertility isn't an issue in their life. Advances in the technology have made egg freezing with IVF more affordable and even covered by some women's insurance plans.
http://www.bioedge.org/index.php/bioethics/bioethics_article/9085/
A small Belgian study of women average age 38 years found that half of them planned to freeze their eggs to lessen the pressure they feel to find the best parenting partner. Most foresaw using their eggs for conception after age 40.
A larger study in the UK saw eight in 10 medical students would be willing to freeze their eggs so that career growth could continue to take a front seat.
Women in the U.S. are also warming up to the idea of using assisted reproductive technology even when infertility isn't an issue in their life. Advances in the technology have made egg freezing with IVF more affordable and even covered by some women's insurance plans.
http://www.bioedge.org/index.php/bioethics/bioethics_article/9085/
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Why We Like Beautiful Babies
I've chosen to be a sponsor for the Beautiful Babies contest, a national contest where parents can submit their babies' photos and win up to $5k (not to mention just the simple thrill of bragging rights!)
It may seem awkward, the Houston Fertility Center connecting to a competition where the thing our patients long for -- a baby -- is being celebrated. But I like to think of it as a healthy way to interact with the world. After all, babies -- all babies -- ARE beautiful. That's why we strive so hard to have our own. Aside from their extreme "cuteness factor" we're geared instinctively to appreciate our own offspring over any other of our lives' creations.
The other side of our sponsorship is that after all these years serving infertility patients, many people who come to our Center now are doing so to have another baby. We have a wall full of happy faces, and we thought this would be a delightful way for our patients, past and present, to share their joy (and maybe win big!) It's a lighthearted contest where friends and family are asked to vote for their favorites.
If you'd like to join in the fun, you'll need to submit your child's photo by this Friday, June 25. You can find out more details through this link. http://kiah.tribunepromotions.com/babies/
It may seem awkward, the Houston Fertility Center connecting to a competition where the thing our patients long for -- a baby -- is being celebrated. But I like to think of it as a healthy way to interact with the world. After all, babies -- all babies -- ARE beautiful. That's why we strive so hard to have our own. Aside from their extreme "cuteness factor" we're geared instinctively to appreciate our own offspring over any other of our lives' creations.
The other side of our sponsorship is that after all these years serving infertility patients, many people who come to our Center now are doing so to have another baby. We have a wall full of happy faces, and we thought this would be a delightful way for our patients, past and present, to share their joy (and maybe win big!) It's a lighthearted contest where friends and family are asked to vote for their favorites.
If you'd like to join in the fun, you'll need to submit your child's photo by this Friday, June 25. You can find out more details through this link. http://kiah.tribunepromotions.com/babies/
How Old Is Too Old?
Recently, a local colleague of mine was quoted in the media about having an "an age cutoff" for fertility treatment, specifically IVF. I thought I'd enter the field to air my own thoughts on the question of "how old is too old" for becoming a mom.
In my practice at Houston Fertility Center, I don't use any particular age to determine whether a woman is "too old" to use IVF. Mother Nature will determine when a patient's body is unable to conceive. So we explore the same related variables -- egg reserve, uterine health, hormone levels -- with every patient.
Our primary emphasis is on the health of the hopeful mother-to-be.
As for IVF using donor eggs, which allows women with low ovarian reserve to become pregnant, I find that women in the age range of 48 to 50 are starting to think again about the impact (of carrying a pregnancy) on both their health and the outcome for the baby. We presently don't have enough data to clearly determine all health issues for women over 50 years old who become pregnant. Research has clarified, however, that children born to mothers in their later years have a higher risk of a number of health conditions.
As with virtually every other facet of the conception picture, a woman's age must be taken into consideration, but primarily in the context of her present health condition.
For more of my thoughts on a woman's age and her fertility, see these blogposts, too:
The Other Side of the Age & Fertility Message
Trying to Get Pregnant After 30 - Time to Panic?
ASRM Embryo Guidelines Should Improve Overall Picture for Fertility Patients
In my practice at Houston Fertility Center, I don't use any particular age to determine whether a woman is "too old" to use IVF. Mother Nature will determine when a patient's body is unable to conceive. So we explore the same related variables -- egg reserve, uterine health, hormone levels -- with every patient.
Our primary emphasis is on the health of the hopeful mother-to-be.
As for IVF using donor eggs, which allows women with low ovarian reserve to become pregnant, I find that women in the age range of 48 to 50 are starting to think again about the impact (of carrying a pregnancy) on both their health and the outcome for the baby. We presently don't have enough data to clearly determine all health issues for women over 50 years old who become pregnant. Research has clarified, however, that children born to mothers in their later years have a higher risk of a number of health conditions.
As with virtually every other facet of the conception picture, a woman's age must be taken into consideration, but primarily in the context of her present health condition.
For more of my thoughts on a woman's age and her fertility, see these blogposts, too:
The Other Side of the Age & Fertility Message
Trying to Get Pregnant After 30 - Time to Panic?
ASRM Embryo Guidelines Should Improve Overall Picture for Fertility Patients
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