Fertilization News and Research

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Study suggests obesity does not affect women’s chances of conception with donor eggs

In women who use donor eggs to become pregnant through in vitro fertilization (IVF), those who are obese are just as likely to become pregnant as normal weight women, according to a new report.

1 Aug 2013

Proposed abortion ban breeds new generation of GOP leaders

It reads like a who's who of the next generation of Republican Party leaders: Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz, Rob Portman. But what is bringing all these marquee political names together is not the Iowa State Fair or a Tea Party rally on the National Mall. Rather, they are all talking discreetly about how to advance a bill in the Senate to ban abortion at 20 weeks after fertilization (Peters, 7/27).

30 Jul 2013

First Edition: July 29, 2013

Today's headlines include reports about the White House's strategy for building support for the health law.

29 Jul 2013

BGI, CITIC-XIANGYA successfully apply NGS to detect IVF embryos with genetic abnormalities

The largest genomic institute of the world, BGI Shenzhen, China, together with Reproductive & Genetic Hospital CITIC-XIANGYA announced today that they have successfully applied Next Generation Sequencing to detect in vitro fertilized embryos with genetic abnormalities.

24 Jul 2013

State highlights: Poll says N.C. abortion bill hurting Governor support

A selection of health policy stories from North Carolina, California and Virginia.

18 Jul 2013

North Dakota judge strikes down state law on nonsurgical abortion drugs

The state judge issues an opinion from an April trial. In the meantime, new abortion and "personhood" proposals in that state rankle some medical professionals.

17 Jul 2013

Semi-quantitative pregnancy tests: an interview with Dr. Paul Blumenthal, Stanford University School of Medicine

Regular pregnancy tests work a little bit like a simple light switch that you have on your wall. It’s either on or off. When it’s on, that means the test is positive; if it’s off, obviously, it’s negative.

12 Jul 2013

Children born after mothers hormonal fertility treatment have increased risk of mental disorders

Whether a child is conceived naturally or in a Petri dish in an incubator has no bearing at all on the child's mental health. However, researchers have identified a small but increased risk of developing a mental disorder such as autism, ADHD or behavioural problems in children whose mothers only received medical treatment to stimulate ovulation and egg development before insemination.

11 Jul 2013

Children born after assisted reproduction at no greater risk for cancer, study finds

Children born as a result of assisted reproduction are at no greater risk of cancer than children born spontaneously in the general population, according to results of one of the largest ever cohort studies of ART children.

10 Jul 2013

Judge blocks new Wis. abortion law; Texas rallies draw thousands

After a hastily called hearing, a federal judge Monday put a 10-day freeze on a new state law requiring doctors who perform abortions to have hospital-admitting privileges. In a 19-page opinion issued Monday evening, U.S. District Judge William M. Conley cited a "troubling lack of justification" for the law and said he would stay enforcement of the admissions provision until July 18, a day after a more deliberate courtroom hearing scheduled before him next week. … Conley's ruling does not affect a separate provision of the new law requiring women to undergo an ultrasound before having an abortion (Stein, 7/9).

10 Jul 2013

New low-cost method of in-vitro fertilization may help infertile couples in developing countries

A new low-cost method of in-vitro fertilization developed at the University of Colorado Boulder that performed successfully in recent human clinical trials in Belgium may help thousands of infertile couples in developing countries.

9 Jul 2013

Risk of implantation failure, lower yield of oocytes linked to higher levels of urinary phthalates

Phthalates are among a group of industrial chemicals shown in some studies to have adverse effects on reproductive health and development, particularly in the male. As such, they have been collectively defined as "endocrine disruptors", and proposed as one of several possible environmental exposures responsible for a decline in fertility.

8 Jul 2013

BCSI, ORIGIO partner to advance pH monitoring solutions for IVF

Blood Cell Storage, Inc., a leading medical device provider based in Seattle, WA and ORIGIO a/s, a leader in delivering innovative Assisted Reproductive Technology solutions headquartered in Malov Denmark, announced a partnership today during the annual meeting of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology.

8 Jul 2013

Texas abortion bill sent to full chamber

A Texas House committee approved sweeping abortion legislation early Wednesday, setting up a new fight on the proposal that would, along with other restrictions, ban abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy. The full chamber will take up the proposal early next week.

4 Jul 2013

Study: IVF treatment linked with increased risk of mental retardation

In a study that included more than 2.5 million children born in Sweden, compared with spontaneous conception, any in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment was not associated with autistic disorder but was associated with a small but statistically significantly increased risk of mental retardation, according to a study in the July 3 issue of JAMA. The authors note that the prevalence of these disorders was low, and the increase in absolute risk associated with IVF was small.

3 Jul 2013

Mixed results for acupuncture in improving IVF rates

Acupuncture, when used as a complementary or adjuvant therapy for in vitro fertilization (IVF), may be beneficial depending on the baseline pregnancy rates of a fertility clinic, according to research from the University of Maryland School of Medicine. The analysis from the University of Maryland Center for Integrative Medicine is published in the June 27 online edition of the journal Human Reproduction Update.

2 Jul 2013

UCSF researchers find that vitamin C may help stem cells, in vitro fertilization

Vitamin C affects whether genes are switched on or off inside mouse stem cells, and may thereby play a previously unknown and fundamental role in helping to guide normal development in mice, humans and other animals, a scientific team led by UC San Francisco researchers has discovered.

2 Jul 2013

House passes abortion ban after 20 weeks of pregnancy

House lawmakers Tuesday passed a nationwide ban on abortion after 20 weeks of pregnancy -- one of the most far-reaching federal bills on abortion in years. The bill, which faces long odds in the Senate and even longer odds to get the president's signature, is unlikely to ever become law.

20 Jun 2013

First Edition: June 19, 2013

Today's headlines include reports the development of the health law's online marketplaces is falling behind schedule.

19 Jun 2013

Special type of IVF may increase risk for insulin resistance among children

A special type of in vitro fertilization, or IVF, may increase the risk for insulin resistance among children conceived in this way, according to a new study from Greece. The results will be presented Monday at The Endocrine Society's 95th Annual Meeting in San Francisco.

18 Jun 2013