Fertility News

Our Infertility Heartbreak

British Foreign Secretary William Hague has spoken for the first time about his "strong" marriage to his wife of 13 years, Ffion — in a bid to stop "hurtful speculation".

The Conservative politician gave a highly personal statement designed to counter allegations that he had an affair with a male aide.

In it, Mr Hague revealed that the couple "would love to start a family" — but have been blighted by infertility problems.

"Sadly this has proved more difficult for us than for most couples," he said.

Ex-EVMS Worker Stole $150K Via Falsified Sperm Donations

NORFOLK — A 48-year-old Hampton woman pleaded guilty Monday to stealing federal grant money from Eastern Virginia Medical School.

Adrienne R. Boothe will be sentenced Dec. 13 and faces a maximum of 10 years in prison, a news release from the U.S. attorney's office in the Eastern District of Virginia said.

Best New Fertility Trends

Conceive magazine has published its list of Top Ten fertility trends, of which I find three to be very encouraging:

1. Single-Embryo Transfer (SET)

What it is: As the name implies, this is the transfer of just a single embryo during in vitro fertilization (IVF) rather than two or more, as has been the custom. Two studies published in 2009 in the European journal Human Reproduction showed that SET is both a successful and cost-effective way to produce the outcome that most people want: a single, live, healthy baby.

2. Natural and Mini-Stim IVF

Chlamydia and Infertility in Fairfield County: A Silent but Deadly Factor

Women suffering from chlamydia in Fairfield County — the area's most commonly reported sexually transmitted disease — may not realize it's a major contributor to infertility, health officials say.

According to Dr. Gad Lavy, Stamford-based medical director of the New England Fertility Institute, half of women seeking infertility intervention have unknowingly suffered damage to their fallopian tubes because of STDs, primarily chlamydia.

Health Plans Often Omit Fertility Treatments

The only way that Faith Amore-Reed can get pregnant is through in-vitro fertilization.

She's had several ectopic pregnancies and too many miscarriages to count. As a result, she lost her fallopian tubes.

Amore-Reed and her husband, Stephen Reed, have an 8-year-old daughter, Carsie, who was born after in-vitro.

They have been trying for a second child. Their latest attempt was this month when her doctor implanted her fertilized eggs.

A Dream Deferred, Almost Too Long

LAKE MARY, Fla. — During a doubles lesson at an Orlando sports club this month, Gigi Fernandez dragged her tennis racket along the service line. She told the women gathered around her to picture the line as the edge of a cliff: they stepped beyond it at their peril.

Fernandez always seemed perfectly positioned on the court, winning 17 Grand Slam doubles titles and reaching No. 1 before retiring in 1997 at age 33. It was only when she tried to have a baby in her 40s that she found herself on the wrong side of the line.

Recession May Have Pushed U.S. Birth Rate to New Low

The U.S. birth rate has dropped for the second year in a row, and experts think the wrenching recession led many people to put off having children. The 2009 birth rate also set a record: lowest in a century.

Births fell 2.7 percent last year even as the population grew, numbers released Friday by the National Center for Health Statistics show.

"It's a good-sized decline for one year. Every month is showing a decline from the year before," said Stephanie Ventura, the demographer who oversaw the report.

Stress Biomarker Linked to Lower Probability of Conception

Elevation of a stress biomarker, salivary alpha-amylase, is associated with a reduction in a woman's chances of conceiving during the fertile part of her monthly cycle, according to research published online Aug. 5 in Fertility and Sterility.

Agencies Find Adopters for Frozen Embryos

The nation's 500,000 frozen embryos face a hotly debated future.

Researchers want them to help cure debilitating diseases, parents wonder whether they should be stored or destroyed, and still others see them as a way for infertile couples to adopt and become pregnant at the same time.

The last path is a little-known but growing option at the heart of a Monday ruling that bars federal funding of embryonic stem-cell research. The Obama administration is expected to appeal the order, which was sought by Nightlight Christian Adoptions and others who oppose research that destroys embryos.

NIH Cuts Off Stem Cell Funding after Court Order

The National Institutes of Health announced Tuesday that it has suspended funding new human embryonic stem cell research and that all federally funded experiments already underway will be cut off when they come up for renewal if a new court order is not overturned.

The announcement - which confirmed fears among proponents that the ruling would result in a comprehensive freeze in federal support for stem cell research - came in response to a court order Monday barring the government from funding the research because it involves the destruction of embryos.