When Do You Need A Fertility Clinic?




Infertility may be the problem if you’re a
  • Woman who has had more than one miscarriage
  • Woman under 35 and not pregnant after 12 months of trying
  • Woman over 35 and not pregnant after 6 months of trying
  • Man who's had a poor semen analysis
Consequently, if the next thing to do in your desire to get pregnant is to look for a fertility clinic, it’s a good idea to do a little research first. Find out what kind of tests or procedures you may need down along the way. In addition think about how far you’re willing to go with infertility procedure, because infertility treatments can cost many thousands of dollars and involve strong drugs or hormones. Furthermore it can be emotionally draining. Hence, being aware of your limitations will help you avoid being persuaded into some new procedures you don’t want and which are way out of your budget.

Of course there are several reasons why fertility clinics are the last resorts. For instance if you’re having trouble getting pregnant, after your gynecologist  has run a blood test for hormones or instructed you to record your basal body temperature for two months, including having your husband checked by a urologist. But when it comes diagnosing the problem and suggesting solutions, an infertility specialist is called in.

So when it’s time to select a clinic, do a detailed research on time. Take cognizance of the fact that some fertility centers that looked great several years ago may have had a lot of changes in staff and compromised on quality.


Things to look for in a fertility clinic.
Make sure the clinic has good quality control and strong ethic. Also ask lots of questions at each clinic you visit. For example:
  • What is the duration of the medical director, doctors, and technicians in the clinic? Frequent staff changes may be a sign of bad management and may contribute to mistakes.
  • Which procedures do the clinic do and how frequent? It’s crucial the clinic has a broad range of infertility solutions and be comfortable with the latest technology.
  • Any age limits for treatment? If so, it shows the clinic is aware of ethical issues.
  • In a procedure which involves fertilising the eggs outside the woman's body and then putting them inside her, who decides how many eggs go back in, you or the doctor?
  • What is the cost of treatment? Though you wouldn’t want to select solely on price, it’s a good thing to be aware of cost so you know what you're getting into.
Most importantly when you call a clinic, and they tell you they are too busy to answer your questions, take your case elsewhere. Possibly they may not have time for your questions once you become their patient.



How to better your chances during infertility procedures
 
A study’s findings, from 30,000 In vitro fertilisation (IVF) cycles over three years, show IVF has a better chance of pregnancy, if fresh donor eggs are used instead of frozen eggs. 

Moreso, regardless of whether fresh or frozen eggs are used, transfer of a single embryo increases the chances of a healthy pregnancy, birth, and a healthy baby (the desired objective in IVF), compared with the transfer of two or more embryos.

Frozen donor eggs are cheaper and more convenient, while fresh eggs tend to be more expensive and require the recipient to manage the egg donor.

In view of the findings, physicians encourage patients and doctors alike to place their focus on achieving a healthy birth result, and not just achieving pregnancy.



Photo Credit: Creative Commons

Comments