Blog - Fertility Specialists Medical Group

How Do We Know Which Fertility Treatment You Need?

February 28, 2012 by Marianne

With a vast array of fertility treatments available, you need a San Diego fertility clinic to help guide you through the maze of options. Many of your choices are actually determined by your personal needs. At the Fertility Specialists Medical Group (FSMG), our physicians carefully consider your situation before recommending a treatment option that gives you the best chance of conceiving.

The step-by-step process begins with a physical exam and complete medical history. Our fertility specialists cannot make a diagnosis until we know of any physical limitations. So your first visit to our office, a consultation, consists of meeting a specialist, undergoing diagnostic tests, and reviewing your history.

Both partners should attend this initial consultation since statistically, the cause of infertility lies equally between the woman and the man. The tests we administer examine everything from a woman’s ovulation cycle and physical anatomy to the quality and motility of the man’s sperm. Occasionally, we have to ask you to return for more tests.

Once all the test results are in, your doctor will explain your alternatives. Treatments often begin with the least invasive, to rule out the simple causes first. Presented here are some of our more common treatment options:

A minimally invasive surgery called a hysteroscopy is an outpatient procedure in which a specialist uses small device to examine your uterus and remove any polyps, scars, or fibroids that may be hindering your conception.
We offer reverse tubal ligation if you’re healthy, under 35, previously had your “tubes tied,” and have now changed your mind about starting a family.
Male infertility treatments in San Diego include sperm analysis. Sperm retrieval can be performed if the man’s sperm count is consistently negligent.
A common obstruction to fertility is a dilated vein around a testicle that heats up sperm and dilutes its potency. A simple outpatient procedure can correct this.
Drugs are available to increase the number of mature eggs a woman produce. Fertility drugs are often prescribed in conjunction with other treatments.
Your partner’s sperm can be injected high into your uterus during a simple inpatient procedure to increase the odds of fertilization. This is called intrauterine insemination.
Techniques may be combined to perform in vitro fertilization (IVF). IVF is one of the most successful fertility methods performed at San Diego fertility clinics. Advances in IVF greatly enhance and increase your chances of becoming pregnant.
FSMG runs an extensive in-house egg donor program to facilitate that process, should time or physical issues limit your other options.

There’s also the option of surrogacy, a practice that’s becoming more and more viable for couples who cannot overcome their fertility problems. Those who choose to use a surrogate may have experienced challenges ranging from advanced age to a previous hysterectomy to uterine anomalies to recent miscarriages.

Which fertility treatment options are best for you can only be determined by a qualified fertility specialist after the test results are in and you have had a conversation with a fertility specialist in San Diego. Once we understand your needs and desires, together we can choose the best course of treatment. FSMG remains committed to helping every couple start a family.

The Impact of Daily Living on Fertility

January 26, 2012 by Marianne

If you and your partner are having trouble getting pregnant, the first step may be to examine your lifestyle. The everyday decisions you make about how you eat, drink, work, play, and clean can impact your fertility in San Diego and elsewhere.

Personal choices—such as drinking alcohol, taking drugs, and overeating—can lower your odds of pregnancy. Alcohol in any amount can be harmful. A single glass of red wine may be good for your heart, but it does not help your fertility.

Stress also plays a role, since it increases your blood pressure, strains your immune system, and alters your reproductive cycles. The National Institutes of Health report that a high level of alpha-amylase, the chemical your body produces when you’re under stress, reduces your chances of conception.

Environmental Hazards

Factors over which you have no control—from air pollution to food contaminants to water quality—can stop you from getting pregnant. The chemicals in your home cleaning and personal hygiene products may also contribute to your inability to conceive, according to Resolve, the National Infertility Association. Talk to a San Diego fertility specialist about these products:

Cosmetics
Pet food
Ink
Paint
Plastics
Electronics
Household cleaning products
Lawn and garden fertilizers and pesticides

At Fertility Specialists Medical Group, we can provide you with a list of the most common toxins to avoid, as well as ways to limit your exposure to environmental pollutants that could be inhibiting your fertility in San Diego and other places. Often, just a few small changes in your daily life can make all the difference.

Lifestyle Impacts

Our fertility experts can help you develop a healthy lifestyle to reach your fertility goals. The most obvious steps to take include:

Maintain a healthy weight
Avoid cigarettes (including second-hand smoke), alcohol, and drugs
Incorporate a stress-reduction program, such as yoga, meditation, or Tai Chi
Reduce or eliminate certain foods, such as sugar and white bread
Get a daily serving of a full-fat dairy food, such as whole milk or cheese
Filter your drinking and cooking water
Avoid the “dirty dozen” fruit and vegetables, or peel them before eating

Staying healthy, including monitoring your weight, may have the single greatest impact on your fertility. A body mass index (BMI) under 19 or over 25 puts you at risk of inhibiting your reproductive potential.

Even after doing all the right things, you still may need additional assistance, which is why we are here for you. A San Diego fertility clinic like Fertility Specialists Medical Group will work with you to help you conceive. Our fertility lifestyle classes, for example, guide you through the maze of lifestyle choices that can increase your fertility rate, such as the nutrition and yoga.

NPR Report: Donor-Conceived Children Fight for Their Rights

January 12, 2012 by Marianne

Since 1996, US courts have recognized the right of adopted children to know who their biological parents are. As children of parents who used donor eggs come of age, they are fighting for the same rights. A recent, well-rounded National Public Radio article reports both sides of the issue.

One woman conceived from donor sperm, Kathleen LaBounty, was both curious about her biological father and concerned about any medical issues for her own children. When she learned, at age 8, how she was conceived, “she says it actually made her love her dad all the more, since he was treating her just like she was his own.”

On the other hand, an unidentified egg donor said that she “has donated her eggs four times. She feels it’s nothing at all like adoption, in which a woman actually bears a child and gives it up.”

It has become a complex issue that society—and the courts—will likely have to come to terms with, as more and more families rely on artificial reproductive technologies (ART), including egg donors.

At Fertility Specialists Medical Group (FSMG), we support our patients’ personal choices and encourage our families to be informed on relevant issues.
Click to read the complete npr.com article online.

NPR Report: Donor Kids Are Like Adopted Kids

January 9, 2012 by Marianne

A National Public Radio report titled “A New Openness For Donor Kids About Their Biology” investigates an emerging trend: parents who used donor eggs to conceive want to share the biological facts of life with their children. Donor-egg babies, like adopted children a generation before, used to be kept in the dark about their biological beginnings.

“Women inseminated with a donor’s sperm,” the article begins, “used to be advised to tell no one. Go home, doctors said, make love to your husband and pretend that worked.”

Psychologists today agree that the shock and trauma to children discovering later in life that their parents aren’t their de facto biological parents is a greater evil than letting the child know early that he or she was conceived in a less than traditional manner. According to Elaine Gordon, one psychologist quoted in the article: “You never want to sit a pre-adolescent down and say, ‘We have something to tell you.’”

Here’s another insight from the article:

“The top three reasons children search for their donors are: curiosity about the donor’s characteristics, a desire to meet the donor, and for medical reasons. Very few reported they wanted to form a relationship with the donor.”Read the complete npr.com article online.

Fertility Specialists Medical Group understands that it is a personal choice whether or not parents want to tell their children. FSMG supports egg donor privacy, including honoring privacy requests from both the donor and the recipient family. FSMG also offers counseling for families struggling with the issue.

This NPR article is the first of a two-part feature story; we will provide you with a link to the second part of the story in another blog post. Stay tuned soon!

In Search of Children: The Road More and More Often Traveled

November 21, 2011 by Marianne

Infertility is a major concern for many couples, and while the problem has always existed, the last decade has brought more public awareness to the issue. Many celebrities, such as Marcia Cross of Desperate Housewives and Courtney Cox-Arquette of Friends and Cougartown have had struggles with infertility. High profile cases of multiple births—such as the case with Jon and Kate Goselin, as well as the infamous “Octomom” Nadya Suleman—also brought fertility discussions into the mainstream.

It’s a positive development that fertility treatment is coming out in the open. For those who long for a child, infertility is nothing short of heartbreaking. Marriages are put to the test. Some people give up on having a biological child and turn to adoption. But people have lately become aware that they are not alone in their struggles. The Center for Disease Control estimates seven million women between 15 and 44 have an impaired ability to give birth. About two million married women in the same age group have tried unsuccessfully to conceive without fertility treatments.

San Diego Is No Different

In San Diego, many couples have decided they need help and have turned to San Diego fertility clinics to discuss their options as they seek to start a family. Thankfully, great strides have been made both in fertility treatments and in infertility diagnosis. A San Diego fertility specialist can determine your specific situation and guide you to the best course of action.

What Are Your Options

Certain fertility drugs can promote ovulation. Clomiphene, for example, induces ovulation in women and may sometimes increase sperm count in men. Gonadotropins, normally administered by injection over several days, cause increased egg production. The first injections cause eggs to be produced, and later injections help with the release of those eggs. Bromocriptine helps those who have trouble ovulating due to pituitary adenoma, a benign tumor in the pituitary gland that releases too much prolactin, reducing estrogen levels and preventing natural ovulation. Once these hormonal levels are normal, many couples are able to conceive without further treatment.

Another possible treatment is intrauterine insemination (IUI). For IUI, the sperm are placed directly into the uterus during ovulation. Often, this option is used in conjunction with fertility drugs. Another option, in vitro fertilization (IVF), involves manipulating ovulation, retrieving eggs so they can be fertilized outside the woman’s body. The eggs are then returned to the uterus. While this procedure gets a lot of media exposure, it is long and complex. Like other fertility treatments, it can have mixed results so it is important to choose an experienced provider.

If you’re concerned about fertility, we can help. A San Diego fertility specialist can discuss all your options, including egg donors and surrogacy, to help you bring a new addition to your home.

Do Natural Disasters Lead to More Births?

November 16, 2011 by Marianne

You wouldn’t normally associate fertility with natural disasters, but we discovered a recent article on the Atlanta Journal-Constitution website that does just that. Atlanta, GA, experienced a crippling ice storm in January, 2011. In October, area hospitals reported a significant increase in the birth rate. More births nine months later.

“When the electricity goes out and you get iced in, boredom sets in. So you think, there’s nothing to do. One thing leads to another and nine months later, you see an increase in the birth rate.”
Read the complete ajc.com article online.

In San Diego, we aren’t likely to suffer from an ice storm, but there is a lesson in this news item you can use to your advantage without experiencing a natural disaster. For example, could you create your own “natural disaster weekend,” where you “strand yourself” in your home without distractions? If you turn off cell phones, unplug the TV, disconnect the Internet, and lock the door, would you and your partner experience the fecundity mentioned in the article?

We don’t have an answer, but we think it may be worth a try. Intimacy, after all, is the first step toward a San Diego fertility increase.

Are Pregnant Women Refusing to Give Birth on Halloween?

October 27, 2011 by Marianne

io9.com, a website that explores themes in science and culture, recently posted a fascinating article citing studies that show American women are refusing to give birth on Halloween. Topical, yes, but could it be true? You’ll have to read the short article to find out … and to find other surprises.

http://io9.com/5851235/are-pregnant-women-refusing-to-give-birth-on-halloween

Fertility Specialists Medical Group remains committed to providing you not only the latest fertility care, but the latest fertility news! Have a safe and happy Halloween weekend.

Why Turn to a Fertility Specialist?

October 17, 2011 by Marianne

There’s a pervading American ideal that says you can overcome any obstacle by yourself. If you just pull up your bootstraps, roll up your sleeves, and get to work, you can do what needs to be done to solve any problem you encounter without outside help. It’s the American way.

People who are experiencing fertility problems are especially likely to fall prey to this ideal and spend a lot of time trying to solve the problem on their own. Too many couples say, “We’ll just try again next month.” Common inhibitions include:

It’s a very personal problem. You often don’t even want to discuss it with your best friends or your family. It is especially hard if you feel pressure from your family to conceive.
You’re not even sure it’s a problem. Didn’t you read somewhere that getting pregnant is supposed to take several months? Who says a few extra months isn’t normal too?
You really don’t want someone to tell you you’re doing something wrong, which would be embarrassing.
You’ve spent so much of your life trying not to get pregnant that now, when you’re ready, you can’t believe it won’t just happen.

Help Yourself

Our advice is to get over any shyness you have about this issue. Remember, solving a problem by yourself often involves educating yourself and asking professionals for help when it’s needed. It can be a huge relief to talk to a fertility specialist who understands what you’re going through.

So here’s the scoop. If you’re in your 20s, you should seek help if you’ve been having unprotected sex for one year without conceiving. If you’re over 30, seek help if you haven’t got pregnant in 6 months. Why is the time limit so much shorter if you’re older? It’s because after you reach 30, age becomes another barrier to fertility. The older you get, the stronger this factor becomes.

Talk to Us

If you’re not sure you have a problem, consult your personal physician first. There are many causes of infertility, and health-related reasons are common. You should know, however, that your personal physician may not be able to solve your infertility, or fully understand the underlying issues. So don’t hesitate to contact a fertility specialist. San Diego fertility clinics offer services you can’t get from your physician’s office.

After an exam and a review of your medical history at a consultation, you and your fertility physician will develop a treatment plan. The goal of the plan is two-fold: first, to help you conceive a healthy baby and second, to make the best use of your resources—not just financial, but also emotional and temporal. That’s another reason to seek the advice of a fertility specialist if you are over 30. Time is working against you.

Get the help you need now. At Fertility Specialists Medical Group, we’ve helped many people like you start a family.

My Fertility Crisis: The Wall Street Journal Publishes One Woman’s Struggle with Infertility

October 10, 2011 by Marianne

We found an interesting article in the Wall Street Journal that highlights the challenges of one woman trying to conceive in her 40s. While we have helped even older women conceive healthy babies, we encourage women to be aware that the older you are, the more difficult it becomes to conceive.

Holly Finn, who wrote the article as well as a book titled The Baby Chase, relates her personal struggle in the article:

“I’m not that woman from the Roy Lichtenstein print who forgot to have children. I was never so wrapped up in my career that I didn’t think about starting a family. But I’m not over 40 and childless for no reason. I was diagnosed with endometriosis, a condition that makes it hard, sometimes impossible, to conceive. I gave too much time to the wrong men. I smoked in my 20s. I preferred red wine to sparkling water. I ate too much milk chocolate. I liked limericks.”

Ms. Finn’s account, as you might guess from the above snippet, is often entertaining but brutally honest. She is one of the many women who have not yet been successful in conceiving. The decision to pursue each level of artificial reproduction technology (ART) is a difficult and entirely personal one. Click to read Ms. Finn’s complete article online.

If you are struggling with your own fertility issues, we urge you to contact a fertility clinic like Fertility Specialists Medical Group to speak to a physician who can assess your individual needs and recommend a treatment plan.

What Are Your Odds of Getting Pregnant?

September 21, 2011 by Marianne

Your chances of getting pregnant during any month depend on many factors: your health, age, and weight, for example. If you’re a healthy, sexually active, hetero couple in your mid-20s (the most fertile time of life), you have about a 20% chance each month to become pregnant.

So take heart; conception is supposed to take several months. You may need four to five months to get pregnant, even without any health issues. The American Society of Reproductive Medicine, in fact, defines “infertility” as one year of regular, unprotected intercourse without conception. Below are the common causes of infertility.

Health

When you’re trying to get pregnant, resolving medical issues will increase your chances. Before trying to start a family, have a complete medical examination. For the best results, visit a fertility specialist, who will conduct tests your personal physician won’t.

Major things like blocked fallopian tubes may require surgery to correct, but many health-related issues can be resolved quickly and easily. Since infertility problems are caused by the woman about 30% of the time and by the man 30% of the time, semen analysis (for health, count, and motility) is also vital.

Age

While over 80% of couples trying to get pregnant will succeed within one year, age definitely plays a role. Your ability to conceive in any given cycle falls after age 30, and it continues to decline every year thereafter. This fact applies to both men and women.

If you are over 35 and have had six months of regular intercourse without conception, don’t wait! Consult a fertility specialist as soon as you can. If age is your primary obstacle, time becomes a factor. Just because you’re over 35, however, doesn’t mean you can’t conceive. It just means it becomes more difficult.

Weight

Too much weight can disrupt a woman’s cycles. Too little weight or too much exercise can also impact the ability to conceive. Women require about 22% body fat for normal ovulation. Fertility specialists consider a body mass index (BMI) between 19 and 25 ideal. See Infertility Myth #12 for more information.

Other Issues

Smoking negatively influences your chances of becoming pregnant. Also, if you know you have irregular menstrual cycles, it becomes difficult to tell when you’re ovulating. If you have no outstanding issues but still can’t conceive, make sure you target the day of ovulation and the five days before it for intercourse.

Treatments

There are many ways to treat infertility, depending on your needs. Some are simple; many use complex technology. Fertility Specialists Medical Group (FSMG) usually start with the simpler treatments such as artificial insemination before moving on to the more complex.

One advanced treatment is In Vitro Fertilization. See how IVF has improved your odds of getting pregnant. IVF dramatically improves pregnancy rates by overcoming difficulties of ovulation and fertilization. IVF does not solve all infertility problems, however.

FSMG makes many fertility treatments available, depending on your particular needs. To discover what treatment is right for you, seek the advice of a San Diego fertility specialist.