Friday Findings 10/18

Chemical in Plastics Associated with 80 Percent Higher Risk of Miscarriage

"Scientists analyzed 114 pregnant women who had histories of infertility or miscarriages and found that those with high levels of BPA in their blood were 80 percent more likely to miscarry than the rest of the participants." This makes me so sad. Like the article states, plastic is everywhere and cannot be realistically avoided. I have heard that chemicals leaching out of plastic could impact fertility but that in increases risk of miscarriage is new to me. However it's important to note that they don't know why the levels were higher in some women. It may not actually be due to increased exposure but how your body metabolizes those chemicals or even some other reason. It's definitely something that needs to be researched more.

Is bacon a male contraceptive?

"Processed meat intake was associated with lower percent morphologically normal sperm while white meat fish intake was associated with higher percent morphologically normal sperm. Dark meat fish intake was related to higher total sperm count." So it's not just bacon that could be a problem, unfortunately. More info here.

Cinnamon May Help Ease Common Cause of Infertility

"A small study by researchers from Columbia University Medical Center in New York City found that women with polycystic ovary syndrome who took inexpensive daily cinnamon supplements experienced nearly twice the menstrual cycles over a six-month period as women with the syndrome given an inactive placebo. Two of the women in the treated group reported spontaneous pregnancies during the trial." When they say small, they mean small - only 16 women were included in the study. I personally took and ate cinnamon while actively TTC and didn't didn't see any noticeable improvement. Cinnamon is pretty cheap though so it's worth a try.

Live births higher with letrozole than clomiphene in women with PCOS

"In a randomized prospective study, 27.5% of women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) who received letrozole (Femara) had a live birth, compared with 19.5% of women treated with clomipheme." Investigators said femara should be the "new standard for care" rather than clomid which is the current go-to. If your doctor is still hesitant to try femara you may want to show them this article. 

Friday Findings 10/4

I decided I would go ahead and make a button. What do you think? I made it while Josh was asleep so couldn't get his seal of approval first. Now on to the news! I found one article about a diet for endometriosis, but it pretty much said "eat more vegetables and protein, eat less sugar and saturated fat" which is basically what's suggested for everyone, isn't it? So I don't see the point in posting it.

Infertile woman treated with new ovary-stimulating technique, IVA, gives birth

In Vitro Activation (IVA) is a new technique developed for women with Primary Ovarian Insufficiency. They can "switch on" dormant follicles by blocking a protein called PTEN, which allows them to produce mature eggs. 27 women diagnosed with the condition were selected for a study, in which their ovaries were removed for a closer look. It was found 13 of them had these dormant follicles, and after blocking the protein small bits of their ovaries were transplanted back near their fallopian tubes. Eight of them experienced follicle growth and five of them developed mature eggs. One of them has given birth to a healthy baby, another is currently pregnant, two are still waiting for their embryo transfer, and one failed to establish a successful pregnancy. More information about this amazing advancement here.

Fertility breakthrough could aid millions
Research has discovered that, "Normal fertility in humans depends on the key cellular location of signalling between a protein named kisspeptin, and its receptor, Gpr54". This signalling can act as a "master controller of reproduction". Using medications to turn this on or off could increase fertility or act as a new contraceptive. Funnily enough kisspeptin was named after Hershey's Kisses by researchers in Pennsylvania before they knew of it's important role in fertility. Read the full article here.

For some infertility patients, twins are the best outcome

In this article Dr. Norbert Gleicher compares the risks and benefits of transferring two embryos instead of one. He says single embryo transfers have been suggested because many doctors see a twin pregnancy as an adverse outcome. However he says when a twin pregnancy is compared to two consecutive singleton pregnancies the risks are pretty much the same. Those needing IVF but desiring two children may find a twin pregnancy more desirable (and cheaper!) than two singleton pregnancies conceived through IVF. Transferring two embryos could be the optimal decision since it does not come with more risks than two singleton pregnancies but has a higher success rate than a single embryo transfer. A more detailed explanation of his thoughts can be found here.

Friday Findings 9/27

How uterus checks embryo reveals why some do not implant

New research suggests that the lining of your uterus looks for chemicals put off by embryos to determine whether to let them implant or not. If the embryo doesn't give off a strong enough signal the lining shuts down the genes necessary for implantation. Hopefully this new information can be used in IVF as another type of grading, where top quality embryos would not only look good but also release enough of this chemical.

Friday Findings 9/20

I'm thinking of making some kind of button for this, since it seems other bloggers who do themed days have buttons. Worth it or not worth it?

Artist raises awareness of endometriosis

If you live in or near Halifax you can visit the exhibit this weekend from 12-5pm. Here is the artists story and here is her website, where you can view some of her artwork and a short film about endometriosis. 

New Controversy Over Experimental IVF Method

The method in question is called mitochondrial replacement, where they replace the DNA present in egg mitochondria with DNA from a donor to avoid disease causing mutations. Apparently mitochondria have their own DNA separate from the egg and eventual embryo. This method would basically allow a child to have three biological parents. 

Friday Finding 9/13

Ugh, I know! I started a new themed post and then promptly neglected to do it for a couple of weeks. Fortunately or unfortunately, depending on how you look at it, there doesn't seem to be that many interesting news stories anyway.

Test-Tube Babies: A Simpler, Cheaper Technique?

A new cheaper method of IVF has been created which could only cost couples only $265! It's designed for developing countries but I can't imagine once it gets approved they wouldn't offer it here as well. They are able to reduce the cost by using cheaper, generic, oral fertility drugs, doing no screening or ICSI, and foregoing the expensive incubator for two test tubes and a heating block. The article says this new method could help about half of infertile couples. Unfortunately those with severe MFI or "very few eggs left" (and I'm assuming poor responders) would not be good candidates for this procedure. I'm a little skeptical of the price though, since they still have to do the retrieval and transfer and I can't imagine those being done for like $100 each. 

Friday Findings 8/23

Last week I mentioned possibly starting a news themed post on Fridays. I've thought a lot about what to call it and this is what I came up with. What do you think? Do you have a better or catchier title idea? Please share if you do! This week I have three stories, one about PCOS, one about Endo, and one general infertility.

Big breakfast diet could 'boost fertility for PCOS women'

Study found that women who eat a large breakfast, medium sized lunch, and small dinner were 56% less insulin resistant, reduced testosterone levels by 50%, and saw a 50% rise in ovulation rates compared to those who ate a small breakfast, medium lunch, and large dinner. This could not only help improved fertility rates but reduce other PCOS symptoms as well. I found this interesting because historically I've eaten small breakfasts or no breakfast at all. 

MicroRNAs expression profiling of eutopic proliferative endometrium in women with ovarian endometriosis

I'll be honest, I'm not exactly sure what this one means lol. From my elementary understanding it seems like our miRNA acts different than the mkiRNA of women without endometriosis. I think this difference may be part of the reason our endometrial lining ends up in the wrong places. Even if I can't understand it completely it seems like they are making progress toward understanding this disease which is a great thing.

Fertility Treatment Puts Women at Risk of Stress Disorder

A study found that 46% of infertile participants met the criteria for a PTSD diagnosis. I'd like to say I was shocked by this but I'm not. Infertility is definitely a traumatic experience that never really leaves you, even decades after it is resolved.