a variety of treatments; one type of care
Napa Valley Fertility Center provides highly-attentive reproductive medicine and expertise in all aspects of infertility care. These include, but are not limited to the following areas of specialization. We also emphasize access to experimental treatments and offer fertility preservation therapies for women with cancer or benign conditions that threaten their reproductive lifespan.
Introduced into clinical practice over 30 years ago, in vitro fertilization (IVF) currently offers the best overall chance for conception. IVF involves surgically retrieving eggs from the ovary and coupling them with sperm in the laboratory to create embryos. After a 3-5 days of growth, the embryos are then transferred into the uterus for implantation.
Third party reproduction includes any infertility treatment where a couple (or individual) is helped to achieve pregnancy by using another individual’s sperm, eggs, embryos or uterus. These interventions range from the simple (the use of donor sperm by a single woman for an intrauterine insemination) to the complex (the use of both donor eggs and a gestational carrier by a couple for a cycle of IVF).
In vitro maturation (IVM) is an experimental infertility treatment that is currently gaining attention as an alternative to traditional IVF. IVM involves the removal of eggs from an ovary before they are fully developed and allowing them to finish their growth process under laboratory conditions. These “in vitro” matured eggs can then be fertilized and used to achieve pregnancy in the same way as in IVF.
Fertility preservation encompasses all medical interventions designed to sustain one’s reproductive capability in the face of fertility-threatening conditions. The need for fertility preservation commonly arises when cancer patients are confronted with treatments (such as chemotherapy, radiation therapy or surgery) that can potentially affect their reproductive organs. Other medical conditions threatening future fertility include certain infectious diseases and inflammatory processes.
During intercourse, semen is deposited in the vagina and sperm quickly ascend the female reproductive tract in search of an egg. An average ejaculate contains more than 250 million sperm, but most are lost during their journey and, by the time sperm reach their destination, it is estimated that only a few hundred remain. Intrauterine insemination (IUI) attempts to improve upon this process. By placing sperm directly into the uterus, a greater number are available and in closer proximity to the egg. The end result: fertilization and pregnancy are more likely to occur.
Dramatic improvements in IVF success over the past two decades have greatly diminished the importance of reproductive surgery. Nevertheless, reproductive anatomic pathology is not uncommon and surgery may be indicated during your fertility evaluation and therapy. Inspired by the difficulties he encountered when trying to access a minimally-invasive surgical procedure for his son, Dr. Uzelac is committed to always making available to his patients the latest and most innovative techniques.
Please fill out our fertility form to take advantage of a free, 20-minute telephone consultation with Dr. Uzelac regarding your options, or phone us at 707.259.1955.
Embryo at the 2-cell stage.
Napa Valley Fertility Center provides highly-attentive reproductive medicine and expertise in all aspects of infertility care. These include: in vitro fertilization (IVF), intrauterine insemination (IUI), ovulation induction, frozen embryo transfer, third party reproduction, male infertility/andrology, pre-implantation genetic diagnosis, and reproductive surgery. We also emphasize access to experimental treatments such as in vitro maturation (IVM) and offer fertility preservation therapies for women with cancer or benign conditions that threaten their reproductive lifespan. Dr. Peter Uzelac, our physician and medical director, is certified by the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology in Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility. He is also a member of the Society for Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility (SREI). Dr. Uzelac launched one of the first successful IVM programs in the United States.
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