Prof. Mary Wingfield attending RCPI Conference

Are You Pregnant or Planning a Pregnancy?

‘From Conception to Birth’

The Institute of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists are welcoming members of the public to a free public meeting on fertility, pregnancy and childbirth on the 9th March 2017 from 18.00-

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Our clinical director Prof. Mary Wingfield will be joined on the day by Prof. Louise Kenny and Prof. Fergal Malone, and will be speaking about fertility, assisted reproductive technology and IVF.

On the evening, you will also hear expert advice on topics such as:

  • Taking care of your mental and physical health during pregnancy; common health conditions in pregnancy such as high blood pressure, its causes and treatment
  • Antenatal care and what to consider for the birth of your baby

All three speakers have a wealth of experience gathered over many years looking after mothers and babies in Ireland and abroad.

On the night, you will have an opportunity to ask questions and hopefully go home feeling reassured and better informed about your journey through pregnancy.

To book this conference and for more information please click here. You can also follow #rcpibabytalk on Twitter for further updates.

We are now delighted to announce that the Institute of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists public meeting – Baby Talk – From Conception to Birth – has been shortlisted for the 2017 Irish Healthcare Awards, being listed in the educational meeting of the year category. The winners will be announced at the event on November 16th and we would like to wish Prof. Wingfield, Prof. Kenny and Prof. Malone the very best of luck.

From all at MFC

BBC Panorama – Inside Britain’s Fertility Business

“Fertility treatment can be an expensive business. Reporter Deborah Cohen investigates how some clinics sell add-ons – the extra drugs, tests and treatments offered on top of standard fertility care. Some can add hundreds or thousands of pounds to a bill. Exclusive new research shows a worrying lack of good evidence from trials to show these can improve the chances of having a baby. Panorama goes undercover to reveal how patients aren’t always told everything they need to know when they ask some clinics about these treatments.”

For more on Merrion Fertility Clinic’s policy on evidence based care and our not for profit status, please see link 

 

Fitness & Fertility

Prof Mary Wingfield, discusses fertility and exercise with Mary Jennings.

She advises that exercise certainly helps to reduce the stress associated with infertility and also to manage body weight.

Studies in Australia and the UK have shown very clearly that if overweight women with infertility lose approximately 10 per cent of their body weight, more than half of them will conceive. She recommends fitness and diet together to make the best impact. Many studies show that obesity affects fertility, particularly in women with polycystic ovaries [PCOS].

Read here for more.

Professor Wingfield discusses the impact endometriosis can have on fertility

Professor Wingfield discusses the impact endometriosis can have on fertility with Arlene Harris.

“It is estimated that one third of women with endometriosis have fertility issues; however, many don’t and endometriosis has been found in women who have several children.

Very bad endometriosis can cause adhesions or scarring within the pelvis and this damages the ovaries, making it difficult for an ovulated egg to find its way into the fallopian tube. In milder forms, the endometriosis lesions cause inflammation or a reaction in the pelvis and toxins are produced which can affect sperm, eggs or embryos.”

Click here to read the Independent’s article on Endometriosis.

Outpatient hysteroscopy presentation

Outpatient hysteroscopy clinics are conducted on a weekly basis in the Gynaecology Outpatient Department in the National Maternity Hospital.

Over 300 women were seen in this clinic in 2015 and almost 200 women had a hysteroscopy. The women seen in this clinic have a variety of issues including post-menopausal bleeding, infertility, suspected uterine abnormalities and recurrent miscarriages. This out-patient service ensures that women avoid having unnecessary general anesthetics but still get appropriate investigations and management of their conditions.



Fiona

Dr Yvonne O’Brien and Dr Mary Wingfield presented their findings of a study that was carried out in Merrion Fertility Clinic at the Irish Fertility Society meeting in Clane on the 13th May 2016. They reported how 117 couples who attended the clinic for investigations of sub-fertility in 2015 had spontaneously conceived. They highlighted the fact that many couples do not need treatment and that it is important for clinics to have a holistic approach to couples with difficulty conceiving. History, examination and appropriate investigations are essential in the management of couples with sub-fertility.

At Merrion Fertility Clinic, we strive to create and offer a balanced, holistic approach to the investigation and treatment of sub-fertility. We individualise people’s care, offering couples the most suitable options for them. We acknowledge that for some couples IVF is the most suitable treatment option. But we also are very aware that not everyone needs or wants IVF and we are in a position to offer other options which can be as successful as IVF for many of our patients including ovulation induction, surgical interventions and complimentary therapies including acupuncture and psycho-sexual counselling if appropriate. Continue reading →

Egg Freezing at MFC

We are delighted to announce our new Egg freezing (Oocyte Vitrification) service.

Egg freezing has been around for a while and success rates are improving all the time. Having said that, the success rates are variable and it would always be preferable for a woman to try to conceive as soon as she can rather than postponing pregnancy and freezing her eggs. Egg freezing is less effective than natural pregnancy and requires ICSI, a type of IVF.

It is an option to consider for women who not currently in a position to conceive but hope to do so in the future. This includes women who are concerned that they are getting older and have not met the right partner or women with cancer, severe endometriosis or low ovarian reserve.

The younger the woman the better the success rates so we recommend you talk to us sooner rather than later if you are wondering about freezing.