Medical Perspectives

Hysterosalpingogram (HSG)- A Vital Diagnostic Tool
A hysterosalpingogram (HSG) is a test that uses x-rays and a special dye to detect scar tissue, polyps, fibroids, and other growths that may be blocking your tubes or preventing a fertilized egg from implanting properly in your uterus. Learn about Shady Grove Fertility’s clinical expertise in performing HSGs and how our attention to patient’s comfort contributes to a positive experience.

Genetic Testing Provides Peace of Mind
Medical genetics technology is progressing rapidly. For the field of reproductive medicine, this means we now have better methods of evaluating the likelihood that a couple could pass on a genetic disorder to future children. Learn more about the new, safe, and affordable, non-invasive genetic screening test offered to patients at SGF.

Popular Fertility Medication Myths and Misconceptions
Clomiphene citrate has been on the front lines of fertility treatment for over 50 years, and while it may work for some patients, using it for the right diagnoses has the greatest affect on success. Learn about Shady Grove Fertility’s success rates with Clomid and determine when it’s time to move on to a different treatment protocol.

Getting Through the Two-Week Wait
For most patients who undergo fertility treatment, the two-week wait before you have your beta (pregnancy test) can seem like an eternity. So we gathered some common questions, ran them by our nurse educators and came up with some answers to your pressing two-week wait questions.

PCOS: One Size Doesn't Fit All
While nearly one-third of all women with infertility are diagnosed with PCOS, the symptoms of the disease may not be the same in everyone. With the proper diagnosis of the disease and a specifically tailored treatment option, almost anyone with PCOS can have a baby. Learn about the symptoms, causes, diagnosis and ways to overcome one of the most common infertility disorders.

FET - The New Hero in Fertility Treatment
Patients using frozen embryos now have the same chance of pregnancy as they do with fresh embryos. Learn how new laboratory techniques for embryo freezing and storage are now giving IVF patients the opportunity to pursue additional treatment without the rigor of a traditional IVF cycle.

How Many Embryos Should You Transfer?
Shady Grove Fertility has continually increased pregnancy rates and lowered the incidence of multiples through an initiative called eSET (elective Single Embryo Transfer).  Since the program’s inception in 2002, over 2,500 patients have elected to transfer one embryo.  Today, nearly 20% of all IVF and 41% of all Donor Egg patients have chosen eSET.  Read more about this initiative and how transferring fewer embryos may benefit you.

If At First You Don't Succeed...Try, Try Again
How many rounds of Clomid is recommended before seeking a fertility specialist?  How many IUIs should you try before moving to IVF?  When is it time to consider Donor Egg? Dr. Eric Levens answers these questions and discusses how to know when it’s time to consider transitioning to a new treatment type.

Not Ovulating? You're Not Alone
Nearly half of all women with infertility suffer from ovulatory disorders. Symptoms include irregular, infrequent or non-existent ovulation cycles. Learn more about the most common infertility diagnosis.

Is Everyone Infertile?
There are an estimated 2.5 million couples diagnosed with infertility each year. Despite the increased awareness in today's society, the incidents of infertility has remained changed over the past 30 years.

Sex & Infertility Treatment
When it comes to a couple's relationship, Dr. Melissa Esposito heartily encourages patients not to lose sight of their relationship’s need for intimacy during fertility treatment.

Keeping The Romance Alive While Trying To Conceive
Sharon Covington, Director of Psychological Support Services at Shady Grove Fertility, explains that talking openly with your partner on how to keep the romance alive while undergoing treatment can be crucial to a couple’s relationship.

50% Of Treatments At SGFC Are Low Tech
Would you believe that one quarter of Shady Grove Fertility’s patients are able to achieve a pregnancy by using less intensive therapies? It’s true. 50% of all treatment cycles performed at Shady Grove Fertility are low tech. In fact, depending on the age of the patient and their diagnosis, Intrauterine Insemination, or IUI is often the first step in their fertility journey.

How Age Plays A Role In Your Fertility
While the majority of public perception of infertility is that it’s a disease that affects women who are in their late 30s and 40s, the truth is that infertility is often age-independent.

What Is The Ideal Weight For Fertility?
Evidence continues to unfold through research on clear connections between a person's weight and their fertility. Most of the research in this area has been conducted on women, where statistics clearly bear out that both too little and too much weight can alter what might otherwise be an optimal reproductive ability.

Reduce Stress, Increase Fertility
A new study has shown that there is indeed a correlation between stress and infertility. What can you do to reduce stress in your life? Our experts share tips and resources for getting you to your happy place.

Nutritional Supplements & Pregnancy
Claims that nutritional supplements will improve our health and may provide some pregnancy-related benefits are gaining headlines in the press. But some supplements may not be as safe as they would seem. Dr. Eric Levens discusses the safest and most effective supplement to take before and during pregnancy.

Improving Sperm Quality Naturally
Like female infertility, male infertility is also on the rise worldwide. While the quality of a man's sperm can be affected by many factors, improving the sperm quality can be as simple as a couple of everyday changes. Nutritionists from Pulling Down the Moon discuss ways to improve sperm quality and your lifestyle at the same time.

Transitioning To New Treatment
Often patients are unaware that using the same fertility treatment protocol over and over without success can be like spinning your wheels. Dr. Ricardo Yazigi discusses the stepped care approach taken at Shady Grove Fertility, and how changing treatment protocol may lead to conception success.

Endometriosis & Infertility
Nearly one in every 10 women in the US today have endometriosis. Dr. Naveed Khan of SGFC's Leesburg office explains how endometriosis may affect a woman's fertility and the treatment options available to help them conceive a baby.

When Should I Seek Treatment?
It can be quite a shock to find that getting pregnant doesn't always come easily and in the time frame when we want. Truth is that 1 in 8 couples in the US struggle with infertility. Dr. Jeanne O'Brien of SGFC's Frederick office provides answers to the many questions that revolve around "how long should I wait to seek fertility treatment?"

Thawing the Mysteries of Frozen Embryo Transfers
Will I get pregnant with a frozen embryo? How do I prepare for a frozen embryo transfer? Will my frozen embryos go bad if I don’t use them quickly? These are many questions that run through the minds of patients who have frozen embryos. Learn the answers to these questions and more.

Embryo Transfer: Day 3 or Day 5?
For many patients, the first question after they learn how many eggs have fertilized and are now embryos is what day will my transfer be. Shady Grove Fertility physician Dr. Robert Stillman discusses the delicate technique of embryo growth and how SGFC's physicians along with the experienced team of embryologist help decide whether an embryo should be transferred back on day 3 or day 5 (blastocyst).

Getting Through the Two-Week Wait
You’ve already waited months, maybe years, to finally get to this point. You’ve entered the dreaded “two-week wait.” This is the time between the end of your fertility treatment cycle and your beta hCG blood test. It’s a brief period of time that’s usually filled with both hope and anxiety, so fertility experts get a lot of questions from patients about these long 15 days.

Age and Achieving Pregnancy
Celebrity news and occasional stories about older first-time moms can make it seem like getting pregnant later in life is a possibility for everyone. The truth is that the media's efforts at attracting readers' attention can be misleading. The reality about fertility for the average woman is that it peaks in her 20's. From that point, her fertile potential declines slowly as she enters her 30's, and there's abundant research to indicate that by age 45, most women are unable to conceive naturally.

When to Seek Treatment
Concerns about your age or medical history? Been trying to get pregnant without success? The first question you need to answer is when to go further in your journey to have a baby. Find out why and how you can get a handle on how fertile you and your partner are, without necessarily committing to fertility treatment.

Common Cause of Infertility
Possibly the most common cause of female infertility, PCOS also impacts other systems of the body. The result is that women with this syndrome are at risk for more life-threatening diseases. What's the latest on the treatment of polycystic ovarian syndrome?

Male Fertility Mysteries Solved
The causes of infertility can be roughly split down the middle between male and female. While men are often hesitant to participate in diagnosis and treatment, doing so will only increase a couple's chances at pregnancy. There are abundant options for treating male factor infertility.

Using Support Services to Cope
Nobody wants the heartache that infertility can bring. Still, most people find it impossible to escape at least some level of sadness and anger. Fertility experts now know that optimal treatment includes the emotional well-being of their patients. The key is making use of the different support services available -- before the infertility struggle becomes a real crisis. Find out how taking care of your emotions can help you with decision-making and strengthening your relationship.

Most Often Treatable Conditions
For a small percentage of couples, getting pregnant isn't nearly as hard as seeing a pregnancy through the first trimester. Dr. Jeff McKeeby talks about the relatively common situation of recurrent miscarriage and the good news that with expert care, successful pregnancy and a healthy baby are the most usual outcomes.

Fertility Primer
Most of us thought we knew all there is to know about getting pregnant -- until we didn't. What more is there? Does everyone need to pursue fertility testing before they try to conceive? How do you know when enough "trying" is enough? Dr. Arthur Sagoskin tells us about the important little details you probably didn't learn in school, plus whether or not you should worry.

The Effect of Weight on Fertility
Studies show that weight issues can impact both women's and men's fertility. Learn how being over or underweight can complicate both conception and pregnancy. Find out how to calculate your optimal weight for getting pregnant.

New Ways to Test Ovarian Reserve
For years, older women who want to have a baby and their fertility experts have relied on the results of FSH (follicle stimulating hormone) tests to predict their success with treatment. Now, we know that there's more to the story than FSH alone. Dr. Melissa Esposito discusses the latest ways to peer into the future with more sophisticated ovarian reserve testing. Find out how reproductive specialists can approach each woman's situation regarding how well her ovaries are working with a highly individualized approach.

Caffeine During Pregnancy
There are some things we all know that pregnant women and those who are trying to conceive should and shouldn't do to protect their pregnancy. Caffeine has long been one of the debatable topics. A new study says that caffeine in all its forms -- coffee, tea, sodas, and chocolate -- should be avoided entirely to avoid pregnancy loss (and, we recommend, to promote fertility treatment success.)

Shared Egg Donation
Recent stories in the press have highlighted American patients who choose to travel overseas for their infertility care. Shady Grove’s Shared Donor Program has an interesting twist: international patients who choose to cross the ocean to seek care here. Why do these patients choose to come to Shady Grove?

Easy Treatment for Ovulation Disorders
One of the most frequently diagnosed causes of infertility is also one of the most treatable. Dr. Eugene Katz talks about the spectrum of ovulatory disorders - where they begin and how they’re treated, often with relative ease.

Mother's Day "Survival Tips"
While everyone else is getting dinner and flowers, you may be receiving condolences. Put your mothering skills to work with the help of these survival tips from one of the pioneers in infertility counseling, Sharon Covington, Director of Psychological Support Services at Shady Grove Fertility. She’ll share with you the importance of mothering yourself through the tough times.

Providing Hope for Cancer Patients
We now speak of "cancer survivors" rather than "victims." Patients who make it through chemo and radiation may find their intentions of having a baby later dashed by resulting infertility. Shady Grove Fertility's expert, Dr. Eric Widra, uses his collaborative connections with area oncologists to offer cancer patients the chance at future parenthood, before their cancer treatment begins.

Healing The Whole Person
While many see fertility treatment as high-tech medicine, many patients are beginning to integrate ancient Eastern practices with their conventional Western treatments. As Shady Grove Fertility Center prepares to welcome Pulling Down The Moon - Integrative Care for Fertility™ to their Rockville office, see how some holistic techniques are helping fertility patients make a mind/body connection.

Financial Options for Infertility
When many couples find out that they need fertility treatment help start or add to a family, one of the first questions that they may ask is whether they can afford it. Thanks to technology, increase of insurance benefits and many new financial options, patients of Shady Grove Fertility Center have a myriad of choices when it comes to affording fertility.

Financial Counselors Guide Patients
The financial counselor program at Shady Grove Fertility Center was started a year ago to help patients get a better understanding of the financial aspect of their fertility treatments. This new part of Shady Grove Fertility’s financial department has been well received by patients, and is one more way SGFC attempts to reduce the stresses of infertility treatment.

SGFC Study Proves Multiple Births from IVF Can Be Avoided
The birth of Los Angeles octuplets is big news. This story is not typical of ethical fertility treatment. It is a departure from the norm for virtually every other woman and man who are considering the use of assisted reproductive technology (ART) to build their families. IVF is one of the most controllable and successful forms of ART, and with the advances in the science and practice of ART, elective Single Embryo Transfer (eSET) is a viable option for many patients who need IVF to conceive.

What is Day 3 Testing?
Day 3 testing refers to the bloodwork and ultrasound evaluation performed on the third day of your menstrual cycle. This testing provides critical information regarding a woman’s reproductive functioning.

Tubal Reversal vs. IVF
While there are approximately 1 million women in the United States that undergo an elective tubal sterilization procedure each year, some of them change their minds a few years down the road and decide they want more children. After that first big decision to have another child, the next question is how best to go about it. In choosing the best treatment option, tubal reversal surgery versus in-vitro fertilization (IVF), there are several important factors to consider.

Diagnosing & Treating PCOS
One of the most common causes of female infertility is polycystic ovarian syndrome, or PCOS. While the name can sound daunting, the truth is PCOS is also one of the most easily treated infertility conditions.

Financial Options for Infertility
When many couples find out that they need fertility treatment help start or add to a family, one of the first questions that they may ask is whether they can afford it. Thanks to technology, increase of insurance benefits and many new financial options, patients of Shady Grove Fertility Center have a myriad of choices when it comes to affording fertility.

Male Infertility: More Common Than You Think
Did you know that Male Infertility is one of the most common form of infertility? Nearly 50% of all infertility cases are due to male infertility. With Father’s Day right around the corner, Shady Grove Fertility has put together a male infertility Q&A to answer some common questions about the causes, diagnosis and treatment of male infertility.

Nutrition Tips for Healthier Eggs and Sperm
Oxidative Stress is a naturally occuring process when when free radicals in our bodies wreak havoc on our DNA, cell membranes and tissues causing damage and ultimately cell death. This chain reaction has been linked to chronic diseases like cancer and heart disease and now fertility, but there are steps you can take to prevent cell