At InVia Fertility Specialists (InVia) we have been providing fertility services to our patients for the past 16 years. Our in vitro fertilization (IVF) program has been very successful and has been ... read more
Clomiphene citrate (CC), marketed, as Clomid or Serophene, is the most commonly used drug for ovulation induction. It was first synthesized in 1956 and was approved for clinical use in the United ... read more
One of the single most important things to look for in a fertility clinic is the presence of a Board-Certified staff. Much like you would in other medical fields or a variety of life situations ... read more
One of the most important things to consider when looking into infertility treatments is that no two patients are identical. In fact, every patient is unique and each should receive a treatment plan ... read more
Intrauterine insemination (IUI) is a simple in-office procedure, which involves placing “washed” sperm inside the uterus to facilitate fertilization. With IUI, we bypass the vagina (which is acidic ... read more
On Monday, August 27, 2018, Illinois enacted a new law requiring health insurance companies to pay for freezing eggs, sperm and embryos for cancer patients! Thanks to Governor Bruce Rauner, State ... read more
Great news! InVia Fertility Specialists (InVia) has been selected as a study site for several IVF clinical trials! If you qualify, you could get an IVF cycle at minimal or no cost. InVia has a ... read more
After egg retrieval, many IVF patients are anxious to know how their embryos are developing in the embryology lab. It's an exciting but difficult part of the IVF process for patients, because they ... read more
In previous blogs, I have presented findings of a normal hysterosalpingogram (HSG) and abnormalities of the uterine cavity. In this blog, the focus is shifted to the fallopian tubes. There are ... read more
Most of us remember very little from our Biology 101 class we had to pass in order to finish high school or college. The terms were technical and the processes complex. However, now that reproduction ... read more
One of the most frustrating group of patients for IVF specialists are those with recurrent implantation failure. These are patients for whom we've done multiple IVF cycles but who still do not get ... read more
An endometrioma is a blood-filled "chocolate" cyst that can occur when endometriosis tissue develops in the ovary. In many but not all cases, endometriomas are treated with surgery. When considering ... read more
Patients with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) often do not ovulate, and thus getting pregnant with PCOS can be a challenge. The first line of treatment usually is the fertility drug clomiphene ... read more
A failed IVF cycle causes a lot of heartache – for both patients and doctors. Aside from pain and grief, many of people start playing the blame game. Was the doctor negligent or incompetent? Did the ... read more
White blood cells in semen, detected in semen analysis, often causeconcern to infertile couples, those who are having trouble getting pregnant, and even their doctors. On the one hand, this makes ... read more
Endometriosis is a condition where the uterine lining (endometrium – shown at right via ultrasound) ) is present outside the uterine cavity. An endometrioma is a blood-filled "chocolate" cyst that ... read more
A low sperm count is a common cause of male infertility. If a man ejaculates even the tiniest number of sperm, we can help the couple achieve pregnancy with in vitro fertilization and ... read more
Intrauterine adhesions (scar tissue), also called Asherman syndrome, can cause infertility, menstrual irregularities (light or absent menses) and recurrent pregnancy losses. In a previous blog, I ... read more
Fertility drugs have been routinely used for ovulation induction for many years now. Many women do not ovulate or ovulate infrequently. In these women, fertility drugs are used to make them ovulate ... read more
One of the important criteria that are assessed during a semen analysis is sperm morphology (the others are count, motility and volume). Sperm morphology is the term used to describe the appearance ... read more
Studies have shown that approximately 40% of patients will abandon the IVF process after a single cycle. The most common cause of dropout is the physical and psychological burden of the treatment, ... read more
Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) can be used to assist couples going through Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) such as IUI and IVF. The primary modality used in TCM to treat infertility and/or ... read more
If you want to use a surrogate, we can help you with the entire process-- and thanks to our location in Chicago, we are also able to offer a favorable legal environment as well as a supportive ... read more
Maintenance of early pregnancy requires progesterone. Progesterone is a hormone produced by the ovary (corpus luteum) in the second half of the menstrual cycle (after ovulation, also called luteal ... read more
There are many issues to think about when you're pregnant or considering becoming pregnant using an egg from an egg donor. Among the health issues to consider is the research associating donor egg ... read more
is a test commonly used for testing ovarian reserve. AMH levels reflect the number of eggs (oocyte pool) that remain in the ovary(ies). AMH levels will decline as a woman ages. AMH levels also ... read more
People often assume a woman is infertile if she and her partner cannot conceive; however, this is not always the case. Males play a big role in fertility, accounting for at least 35% of infertility ... read more
Early miscarriage (early pregnancy loss or spontaneous miscarriage) is defined as a the loss of an intrauterine pregnancy within the first 12 6/7 weeks of pregnancy. It is usually diagnosed with ... read more
Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis (PGD) is a procedure used to screen embryos or eggs for genetic or chromosomal abnormalities during a cycle of in vitro fertilization (IVF). There have been several ... read more
