The IVF Specialist's Blog for IVF patients

Sunday, April 18, 2021

IVF Video . No embryo photos = Bad IVF clinic

The important of embryo photos in an IVF cycle

Many of our patients have done an IVF cycle in another clinic before coming to us, and they are surprised when we tell them that we give photos of embryos routinely to all our patients , because their earlier IVF clinic did not bother to share any information at all – and they did not even know that their embryos could be photographed !

We do this for many reasons.

This is one of the global best practices for all world-class IVF clinics, and we want our patients to be confident that they have received the best possible medical care . Giving them photos of top quality embryos is tangible evidence that we have done this – after all, the only thing an IVF clinic can do is make embryos, and top quality IVF clinics make top quality embryos !

This documentation gives them peace of mind that they haven't left any stone unturned in their quest for a baby . Patients are mature enough to understand that while the outcome of an IVF cycle is uncertain , the process is definitely in the doctor’s hands. By sharing embryo photos , they know that we have carried out the process properly .

Equally importantly , patients will carry these files and show them to other doctors , and these doctors will be able to verify ( after seeing the embryo photos ) that we have provided our patients with top quality medical care . This can be extremely reassuring for the patient.

By being open and transparent , we increase the confidence our patients have in the quality of care we provide them. This is invaluable for us , because it's our patients who are most important source of referrals . We don’t offer any cuts or kickbacks to doctors to refer patients to us , which is why we focus on delighting our patients, so they will refer their friends and relatives to us .

Finally these photos give patients a head-start in starting their Baby Album !

Friday, April 16, 2021

How to do a Self-Insemination using the Malpani Baby Kit. A Guide for Infertile Couples

You can read more about this at http://www.drmalpani.com/knowledge-center/articles/selfinsemination

You can buy the kit at http://www.drmalpani.com/knowledge-center/resources/tools/self-insemination-kit-india

We look forward to helping you to have a baby !

Bad reporting by IVF clinics when doing a semen analysis - how labs cheat patients

This is a great example of the bad reporting which many IVF clinics resort to , in order to increase their work load.

This semen analysis report looks very official because it has been computer printed , and the man is told he has 0% normal forms. This is labelled teratozoospermia, and the doctor has now diagnosed him as having male factor infertility, and advised IVF/ICSI treatment.

This is very profitable for the IVF clinic, but there is a very high probability that the lab has fudged the figures, because the technician has not bothered to stain the sperm to study their morphology properly. If he had, then the lab would have given an image of the slide of stained sperm, so this could have been verified independently. Staining sperm and studying their morphology take a lot of time and expertise, and most technicians do not have this capability. The fact that this is missing suggests that the technician has been sloppy, and has given a report which is wrong and misleading. Sadly, there is no concept of Quality Control in Indian labs, and they can get away with mis-reporting, because patients are ignorant and clueless, and there is no regulation.

Please don't allow IVF clinics to cheat you !

IVF video - How IVF doctors fool their patients - and how IVF patients can protect themselves !

The commonest reason for IVF failure

The commonest reason for IVF Failure is poor quality embryos , and the commonest reason for poor quality embryos is a poor quality IVF lab.

The trouble is that patients aren't even aware that their embryos are of poor quality - and this is one of IVF’s dirty little secrets today - that most IVF clinics in India aren’t capable of creating good quality embryos. They hide this fact by refusing to share information with patients , by hiding the medical records , and not providing photographs of theirembryos to patients.

They do not want to provide tangible documentary evidence of their incompetence – and what makes my blood boil is that they can get away with this arrogance and incompetence because patients aren’t assertive enough to demand their legal rights , and ask for their own medical records ! They have a legal right to these, and it’s illegal on the doctor’s part to hide these, but IVF doctors can merrily continue getting away with cheating patients on a regular basis , because patients are so poorly informed, and they trust their doctors blindly. This can be an expensive error !

When the IVF cycle fails, instead of accepting responsibility for this , the IVF doctor adds insult to injury by blaming the failure on the patient’s poor egg quality , or a thin uterine lining – “facts’ they cook up after the fact, to save their own skin !

The poor patient doesn't know any better , and is forced to accept whatever explanation the IVF clinic gives for the failed implantation. This is why they get taken for a ride .

Even worse, this kind of malpractice harms the reputation of all IVF clinics , because once a patient has burnt their fingers at one IVF clinic , they are very reluctant to trust any other IVF doctor , or take treatment from any other IVF clinic , no matter how good it is .

They have had one bad experience already , and they aren't sophisticated enough to be able to differentiate between a good IVF Clinic and a bad IVF clinic !

This is why you need to do your homework in advance, before starting your IVF cycle !