Trying to schedule your fertility treatment among all the other things on your “To Do” list can be difficult.  That’s why our team of committed fertility specialists, RNs, MAs, sonographers, phlebotomists and embryologists are available 365 days of the year.

New Hope Fertility’s West Side clinic not only makes commuting easy by sitting in New York City’s Columbus Circle, but also ensures you get a seat in our waiting room — even on the weekends.

If you’re having trouble making the time for a consult during the week, don’t forget our office is open from 7AM to 3PM on the weekends.  If you’re already part of the New Hope family, you can schedule your monitoring between 7AM and 2PM on Saturday and Sunday as well.

Get ahead of summer plans and start realizing your dreams — visit New Hope on the web to schedule a consultation or give us a call at (212) 400-9614.

Since its founding in 2004, New Hope Fertility has always strived to bring safer and more effective IVF practices to the forefront of fertility care.

A leading advocate of Single Embryo Transfers (eSET), our protocols support a less is more philosophy.  When it comes to your fertility care, we believe in less danger and more safety for the mother and child.  This means transferring less embryos during your IVF treatment to ensure we can fulfill this peace of mind.  A recent study published in the March edition of Fertility and Sterility supports the safety and efficacy of eSET.

In the study, the health of two singletons from the same mother (eSET) and the health of IVF twins and their mother (double embryo transfer) were the primary focus.

The findings? The health conditions of the mother and child following eSET treatments were much more favorable than that of IVF twins:

The neonatal and maternal outcomes were dramatically better for women undergoing two IVF singleton pregnancies compared with one IVF twin pregnancy after double-embryo transfers.

Not only were IVF twins born “very” pre-term with significantly lower birth weights, but were reported as having more serious complications, including respiratory issues and jaundice (a yellow complexion associated with too much bilirubin in the blood that can lead to birth defects).  Mothers who elected for double-embryo transfers were more likely to experience pre-eclampsia and go into labor early, too.

We’re always thrilled to read more research that supports our most important protocols. To read more on our minimally invasive approach to IVF, visit us on the web or schedule a consultation.

Here’s to spreading safer and more effective practices!

Because we treat all women regardless of health history, we meet many who have been unfairly labeled as “IVF non-responders” by the clinics at which they received treatment that resulted in a lost cycle.

At New Hope, we do not believe in the term “IVF non-responder.”  Our team of fertility specialists believe the devil’s in the details: it is unrealistic to state a woman is simply “non-responsive,” rather, there must be something waiting to be discovered about the woman’s body and her follicles that has remained unseen by other clinics.

This was the case for a recent patient who came in for a visit after failing multiple cycles at another clinic here in New York City. After coming in for her consultation, she revealed that she had experienced 4 failed cycles, only producing 1 dominant follicle during her treatments, which didn’t transfer.

Considering her health history, our doctors — along with the patient — decided it was wise to go forward with our most holistic protocol here at New Hope, Natural Cycle IVF.

Because Natural Cycle IVF (NC-IVF) relies on the one dominant follicle produced naturally every month, it was a perfect protocol for this particular woman. Her previous treatments and experience with fertility medications clearly did not make more than one egg (which fertility medications are meant to do), so it was only obvious to our team that we should work with what we have — the one dominant follicle she always produced.

Not only does NC-IVF require little to no fertility medications, cutting the cost of treatment and reducing the physical stress of taking meds, but is simply the best option for those who do not produce multiple follicles.  Natural Cycle IVF is an organic approach to helping those having difficulty conceiving, and we’ve been using it successfully for over a decade!

So, fear not “non-responders,” we’ll never call you that here!

For more on Natural Cycle IVF, visit us on the web or come in for a consultation.

Choosing a birth control method in a world full of advancing science and new options can be overwhelming. However, learning the side effects of popular methods may assist you in your choice, allowing you to avoid wasting time considering methods that may put your health at risk.

One popular type of birth control is Mirena, a hormonal intrauterine device (IUD) that was approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2000 and is manufactured by Bayer. Bayer also makes other contraceptives, like the birth control pills Yaz and Yasmin.

Many women seeking an alternative to the daily regimen of taking pills have turned to IUDs as a more convenient way to prevent pregnancy. It is estimated that 150 million women worldwide use Mirena or another IUD. IUDs are inserted into the uterus by a doctor and prevent pregnancy for several years.

Since Mirena’s approval, however, the FDA has received more than 45,000 reports of adverse events related to its use. These reports include device expulsion, device migration, pelvic inflammatory disease and ectopic pregnancy – all of which can result in pain, bleeding, organ damage and infertility.

Device Expulsion

The most common side effect associated with Mirena is device expulsion, which occurs when the device exits the body through the vagina spontaneously. This can cause cramping, bleeding and discomfort during sex. Expulsion requires women to use other forms of birth control until a new IUD can be implanted.

Device Migration

Some women report instances of device migration, in which Mirena moves from the uterus to other places in the body. It can puncture the wall of the uterus and affect nearby organs. The bladder, pelvis, fallopian tubes, blood vessels and abdominal cavity are all vulnerable to damage once Mirena migrates out of the uterus. In such instances, a physician must locate and surgically remove the device to prevent further injuries, pain and infection. Using Mirena after childbirth increases the risk of puncturing the uterus, so it is recommended that mothers wait to use it until at least six months after giving birth.

Pelvic Inflammatory Disease and Ectopic Pregnancy

Within just a few weeks of implantation of Mirena, users can develop pelvic inflammatory disease (PID), which endangers the ovaries, uterus and fallopian tubes. PID can also be extremely painful and cause infertility. The FDA has stated that women with a history of PID should not use Mirena. Users of Mirena have also experienced ectopic pregnancy, which occurs when an egg is fertilized somewhere outside of the uterus. This complication will terminate the pregnancy, puts the woman’s health at risk and can leave the woman infertile.

Alanna Ritchie is a content writer for Drugwatch.com, specializing in news about prescription drugs, medical devices and consumer safety.

CGH, or Comparative Genomic Hybridization, is a valuable tool we offer during IVF to ensure you’re getting the most from your treatment here at New Hope Fertility Center.

Although we’ve been offering PGD testing since 2004, we’ve partnered with PGD experts, Reprogenetics, in the last couple of years to provide you with the latest in embryo-testing technology.

Unlike the past — when PGD was used for gender selection and finding only specific chromosomal abnormalities — our latest CGH testing is the most comprehensive test you can use in an effort to detect significant genetic abnormalities.

If you or your partner have experience with genetic disorders in your family or simply need the security that comes from utilizing the best resources available, it is important to consider the use of CGH testing during your treatment. Not only does this state-of-the-art technology make IVF safer, as we’re reducing the risk of pregnancy loss, but also reduces the chance (and cost) of multiple cycles since we’re transferring only the healthiest embryos.

The availability of CGH testing also allows our center to highlight the benefits of our less is more philosophy, which focuses on single embryo transfers to reduce the chance of multiple pregnancies. Transferring multiple embryos and resulting multiple pregnancies/births are stressful on the uterine environment, significantly decreasing the chance of a healthy pregnancy and increasing the chance of premature births. With CGH, we virtually wipe out these concerns, since we’re selecting, freezing and transferring only the most mature and robust embryos that are undoubtedly free of chromosomal abnormalities.

We’d say “welcome to the future of IVF,” but it seems we’re already there!

For more information on our minimally invasive approach to IVF with CGH testing, please visit us on the web to schedule a consultation.

Like most events in our lives, the process of in vitro fertilization is emotionally charged. Not only are you embarking on a life-changing journey, but choosing a path unfamiliar and different than those taken by your female counterparts. Tack on the financial burden of treatment and IVF is considerably more mentally challenging than you thought before.

That’s where New Hope Fertility comes in. Understanding the internal struggles presented during someone’s first, second, or third cycle, we’ve developed customizable IVF treatments that not only reduce the cost of treatment, but significantly reduce the mental and physical stress involved in the process.

Mini-IVF™ and frozen embryo transfers are just a couple examples of how New Hope helps our patients get pregnant through minimal stimulation (less medication) at a lower cost. Recent research suggests that frozen embryo transfers — freezing embryos from one cycle and transferring them in a subsequent cycle — decrease the chance of failed transfer or miscarriage since the embryo is being transferred into a less-stimulated uterine environment.  Less medication and taking less risks during an initial cycle (when an egg is retrieved and transferred in the same rotation) increase the health of a woman’s uterine environment and therefore increases the chance of success with her first batch of embryos (rather than placing fresh embryos into an overstimulated environment).

We recently had a couple women have success with Mini-IVF™ and frozen embryo transfers. Both 36-years-old, these two patients arrived at our center suffering from primary infertility. Each woman completed 2 Mini-IVF™ cycles in order to freeze embryos and after their (single) frozen embryo transfers, got pregnant. Congratulations to both Ms. 36s!

For more information our treatments, that can reduce the stress and cost of IVF treatment, please schedule a consultation.