The “IVF - Endometriosis Success Stories” plus 3 more

IVF - Endometriosis Success Stories
Pregnancy - In Vitro Fertilisation - Administrated Drugs - Part II
Pregnancy - In Vitro Fertilisation - Administrated Drugs - Part I
Pregnancy - The Endometrial Biopsy Procedure

Posted: 17 Feb 2010 10:25 AM PST

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Endometriosis, and the infertility that often comes with it, are among the worst diseases that any woman wanting to have a child can experience. However, there is hope to surmount the challenges that come with this condition and achieve pregnancy success through IVF.

Endometriosis is prevalent among women of many ethnicities, regardless of age or background, and its cause is unknown. It is very difficult to endure this painful gynecological condition without the support, patience and love of our partners, family and friends. Despite the agony, many women do overcome endometriosis and go on to have children. Lara and Michelle are two such women who-despite tremendous odds-refused to give up their dream to conceive and in the end succeeded. Here are their inspiring stories: Lara's Story

In less than two years of their acquaintance, Lara and her boyfriend felt they were ready to get married. Before doing so, they both took fertility tests to determine their chances of having kids, especially since Lara has a history of endometriosis that led to the surgical removal of one of her ovaries, in addition to a damaged fallopian tube, when she was only 21.

According to her fertility test results, endometriosis had found its way to her remaining tube and had completely blocked it. That left IVF as her only remaining option for possible pregnancy. Good thing, her boyfriend's sperm analysis came out normal.

After getting married, Lara and her husband gave up drinking and adopted a healthy diet and lifestyle, in an effort to improve Lara's chances with IVF. In addition, she began using a daily inhaler for hormone suppression and fertility injections to stimulate egg production as part of Phase I of her first IVF treatment. The injections worsened her endometriosis, making scans and internal exams very painful for her. But through it all, her husband supported her.

The couple's efforts eventually paid off. Lara produced eggs, underwent IVF Phase II (egg extraction) without difficulty. Phase III (egg fertilization) took place in the lab and was successful, but the last phase (embryo transfer) was so painful that it made her cry.

Two weeks after her IVF Phase IV, a blood test revealed that she was pregnant! Lara and her husband were so ecstatic and could not believe their first-time success with IVF.

Three weeks later, she had a scan and the clinic told her to expect twins. Thirty-seven weeks later, she gave birth to her first set of twins (a boy and a girl) by caesarian section. A few years later, she took her second and final IVF treatment and bore another set of twins! She then had a hysterectomy. Now with four children, Lara and her husband could not ask for more. Michelle's Story

Michelle was 42 and afflicted with severe endometriosis. She had endured two miscarriages and four failed IVF cycles. She and her partner made the difficult decision to go for one final attempt at pregnancy with a fifth cycle. She decided to try something different for this cycle by including acupuncture as a complimentary IVF therapy. After just three acupuncture treatments, the day came for her egg retrieval. She successfully produced more eggs then she had on any previous cycle.

The acupuncture also served to successfully relax her and increase blood flow to her uterus. To her surprise, she felt no painful cramping or discomfort after the egg retrieval.

Just before the embryo transfer was to be performed, Michelle went for another round of acupuncture treatments to help regulate her hormones and continue to increase blood flow to her uterus, hoping this would result in a successful embryonic implantation.

Two weeks after the transfer, Michelle was declared pregnant! Taking caution due to her history of miscarriages, Michelle continued to undergo acupuncture therapy in her first trimester. According to her acupuncturist's advice, the treatments are especially helpful for preventing another miscarriage, especially when women are in their late 30's or 40's when unfortunately it is a much more common occurrence. Today, Michelle awaits the arrival of the Christmas present she has longed for many years: the birth of her baby boy.

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Pregnancy - In Vitro Fertilisation - Administrated Drugs - Part II

Posted: 17 Feb 2010 10:13 AM PST

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LHRH agonist
Alternatively, it can be taken as a subcutaneous injection, in which case you usually only need to have one a day. Some women prefer this, for reasons of convenience. Others find that they already have enough needles stuck into them during the rest of the treatment. Recently a new form of this drug has been developed which involves in total only one injection, the effects of which last for several weeks.

You can carry on with your normal life during this part of the treatment; you can have sex and you can drink a moderate amount of alcohol, although it is helpful to cut it out at the start. Basically the drug puts your system through an artificial menopause, and the side-effects you experience are those usually associated with the menopause, including headaches, nausea, hot flushes, giddiness or mood changes.

LHRH antagonists
These, a more recent variation, also consist of gonadotropin-releasing hormones, but they do not so much knock out the woman's hormonal system as compete with it. The effect is the same. Such drugs are very effective and act in three days, so that in one treatment programme they only have to be taken from days seven to 11 of the woman's cycle. However, they are very new and very expensive, and are rarely used in this country. Even at those clinics where they are available, they are not used on all patients, but can be useful for a woman for whom the more conventional drugs have failed.

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Pregnancy - In Vitro Fertilisation - Administrated Drugs - Part I

Posted: 17 Feb 2010 10:12 AM PST

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The drugs administered in the first stage of IVF override the woman's natural cycle in order to produce more eggs under carefully controlled conditions that make it possible for them to be removed and fertilised in the laboratory. The exact programme prescribed for you, and the dosages, will depend on your own individual circumstances and on your consultant. You have to buy a huge quantity of the drugs, which are expensive, so ask your clinic about the best way to store them, whether in the refrigerator or at room temperature. Below are the main types of drugs and what they do:

LHRH agonist
Usually gonadotropin-releasing hormones produced by the woman's hypothalamus act on the pituitary to produce follicle-stimulating and luteinising hormones which in turn stimulate the ovaries to produce follicles. Naturally, these are produced in pulses every 90 minutes. A constant supply of them will make the pituitary shut down and suppress its hormone production completely, so stopping the woman's monthly cycle. This process is called down regulation, and is the first step in most forms of IVF treatment.

Gonadotropin-releasing hormones come in several drug forms, often as a nasal spray. Depending on your natural hormone levels and the exact type of drug prescribed, you may have to take it as often as every four hours, either five or six times during 24 hours. It can be hard to keep to a regular timetable, and some women use a stopwatch or a multi-alarm wristwatch to help. If you do forget, you should take the spray when you remember, and then get back to your normal four-hourly schedule. Newer forms of this are available that only need to be taken two or three times daily. With some treatment programmes you start the spray on about the twentieth day of your cycle, then take it for about four weeks. This is known as the long protocol. With a shorter protocol, you may start it on about the first day of the cycle and only take it for about two weeks. Or with an ultra-short protocol, you may be prescribed only a very short course of this drug, lasting just a few days.

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Pregnancy - The Endometrial Biopsy Procedure

Posted: 17 Feb 2010 10:12 AM PST

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Endometrial biopsy is surgical procedure, a minor one, that often is undertaken as a laparoscopy. Through this procedure is will be taken a sample of tissue from the lining of the womb and by this it will be noticed if it develops to support a pregnancy or not.

As preliminaries of endometrial biopsy procedure, you may have to give a pass a number of tests. This may vary depending on the clinic where you agree to make the treatment or depending on your personal circumstances. These test may include:

Cervical smear
A small sample will be taken of the mucus and cells on the woman's cervix. This can be tested for cancer and any bacteria or infections of the reproductive system. The test, carried out by a nurse, is usually painless.

Blood test
These are taken on a regular basis throughout the course of in vitro fertilisation treatment. The first test is taken at a fixed point during a woman's cycle to establish the base level of the hormones involved in stimulating the development of follicles and eggs. The main hormones measured are follicle stimulating and luteinising hormones, progesterone and oestrogen. The test may also measure the level of prolactin, a hormone which stimulates the production of milk and which can cause problems with fertility.

Semen test
The clinic will also want to test the man's semen to check sperm numbers and quality. It is very likely that this will already have been done. If the man thinks he may have any difficulty in producing his sperm sample during treatment, or if there are doubts about its quality, the clinic may want to get a sample in advance and freeze it.

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