Sharon O'Donnell, embryonic specialist and IVF lab supervisor at Bennett Fertility Institute

INTEGRIS Health’s Bennett Fertility Institute is one of the top fertility clinics in the country, according to 2002 statistics released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

“Fifty-five percent of our patients in certain age groups have babies with each in vitro fertilization (IVF) attempt,” says Eli Reshef, M.D., the institute’s medical director.

Nationally, about 41 percent of fertilization attempts result in pregnancies in women younger than age 35.

The CDC gathered 2002 data from 380 fertility clinics across the country. The information showed that Bennett Fertility’s success rates far exceed the national averages of women who have babies through assisted reproductive technology (ART) and placed the clinic among the most successful clinics in the country.

“The increasing success rate of Bennett Fertility Institute is due to several factors,” says David Kallenberger, M.D., the institute’s program director. “Our clinic has been in operation since 1985 and, therefore, has had the opportunity to acquire vast experience in the art and science of in vitro fertilization.We treat each patient individually, and have a superb laboratory crew to take care of the intricate details of the fertilization and embryo-culture process. Our nurses and doctors communicate very well with our patients, with laboratory personnel and among themselves.”

What Is Infertility
Infertility is described as the inability to conceive naturally after 12 months in couples in which the woman is under 35 years old. In couples in which the woman is 35 years of age or older, six months of inability to conceive is considered a fertility issue. About 10 percent of American couples have infertility-related problems. In that group, about 30 percent of problems occur in women, 30 percent occur in men, and 30 percent are unexplained.

Baby photos adorn the walls of the Bennett Fertility Institute, creating an intimate and hopeful atmosphere.

ART
Physicians often use ART to help couples get pregnant. ART procedures include insemination and IVF. IVF involves surgically removing eggs from a woman’s ovaries and combining those with sperm to help a woman become pregnant.

In 2002, Bennett Fertility Institute made 145 IVF attempts in women younger than 35. Of those attempts, 54.5 percent resulted in live births. Nationally, of the 37,591 IVF attempts made in women in the same age group in 2002, 40.7 percent resulted in live births.

Typically, the younger the woman, the more likely she is to conceive a child through this technology. As women age, so do their eggs, which makes conception more difficult, even with ART.

“Even though we do not prohibit women age 40 and older from going through IVF, we do not encourage them to go through this expensive and extensive process since the success rate of this age group is very limited,” says Reshef. “We generally encourage women 40 and older to consider alternatives to conventional IVF, such as egg donation.”

Success Rates
Out of 46 IVF attempts in women ages 35 to 37, 41.3 percent successfully had children through the Bennett Fertility Institute. And out of 17 attempts in women ages 38 to 40, 35.3 percent delivered children.

Nationally, 30.6 percent of fertilization attempts in women ages 35 to 37 resulted in live births, while 20.5 percent of attempts in women ages 38 to 40 produce babies.

Women who conceive through ART sometimes have multiple births. Of Bennett’s 2002 pregnancies in women younger than 35, 32 percent resulted in twins or triplets. Despite placing fewer embryos per patient in IVF, Bennett Fertility Institute was able to accomplish better pregnancy rates than the national average and achieved fewer multiple births, compared with the national average.

“Our goal is to maximize our pregnancy rate while minimizing multiple pregnancies,” says Reshef. “Ultimately, we would like to be able to transfer only one embryo per procedure and possibly eliminate the occurrence of twins or triplets.”

Egg Donation
Women sometimes use donor eggs to conceive children. In cases of male infertility, donor sperm is sometimes used. In 2002, Bennett Fertility Institute’s donor egg procedures resulted in a 62.5 percent live birth rate, way above the national average of 50 percent.

All fertility clinics in the United States are required by law to report their success rates to the CDC, according to the Fertility Clinic Success Rate and Certification Act, which Congress passed in 1992. The CDC uses the data to publish an annual report, in which the ART success rates for each clinic is detailed. The rates are published about two years after they are reported, so that the CDC can verify the results.

To Learn More
For more information on assisted reproductive technology, check out the American Society for Reproductive Medicine’s Web site at http://www.asrm.com or the CDC’s Web site at www.cdc.gov.

For more information on Bennett Fertility Institute, log on to www.INTEGRISOK.com.

INTEGRIS Health 3300 N.W. Expressway, Oklahoma City, OK 73112 (405) 949-3011 | HealthLine: (888) 951-2277