National Infertility Awareness Week (April 22-28, 2018), founded by the fertility support group RESOLVE, is intended to increase awareness of how infertility affects men and women. It also encourages the public to understand reproductive health. This year, take the pledge to #flipthescript to encourage dialogues about barriers to care and opportunities for those who cannot conceive naturally.
The fertility center at UT Health San Antonio is advancing reproductive health and fertility care and removing the barriers people face when trying to grow their family. We empathize with fertility challenges and understand the importance of individualized care which addresses the specific needs of each patient. We are here for our patients and offer effective evidence-based fertility care. Three recent innovations in fertility treatment have provided more hope for our patients by decreasing costs and increasing success rates.
INVOcell is a more “natural” in-vitro fertilization using an FDA approved vaginal culture device placed in the woman’s vagina to be the incubator for the eggs and sperm developing into embryos. Traditionally, early-developing embryos are observed in a laboratory, but INVOcell allows development within the woman who is acting as her own incubator. This allows for lower cost of treatment and the couple having more time with their developing embryos.
Oocyte cryopreservation is the ability to freeze eggs to be used at a later time. This technique is now standard of care and is used by women who need to delay pregnancy while preserving their fertility due to cancer treatment, life events and other situations.
Pre-implantation Genetic Testing (PGT) is a technique that analyzes the number of chromosomes in a developing embryo. The test detects possible genetic disorders such as Trisomy 18 or cystic fibrosis and promotes the transfer of genetically-healthy, single embryos which may increase live birth rates.
Our board-certified, fellowship-trained fertility specialists have appointments available to provide all these services to interested patients.
If you are interested in seeing a fertility specialist or would like to learn about some of these procedures, please schedule an appointment by calling 210-450-9500. Let us be part of your solution to overcome barriers and achieve your family dreams.
Learn more about the fertility center at UT Health San Antonio.
Story by Jennifer F. Knudtson, M.D. for UT Healthier News