National Infertility Week – Thoughts about IVF and Tubal Reversal

During October 19th through October 25th – National Infertility Week – you will hear a lot about In Vitro Fertilization (IVF), the most popular infertility treatment in the United States. If you are one of the hundreds of thousand women who had a tubal ligation and want to become pregnant again, you might be surprised to realize you can get a tubal reversal to have another child. When you change your mind about wanting another child, however, your ob/gyn doctor will most likely counsel you to have treatment with IVF. But which treatment is best?

Just to get you up to speed, a tubal reversal is a microsurgical technique for repairing the fallopian tubes where they were cut. The preparation is minimal for the surgery including some review of your tubal ligation operative records.

With an IVF, however, there is a course of drugs given to you. You will receive both intramuscular and subcutaneous shots. Some stimulate and some prevent premature ovulation. Most of them will be taken over the course of a few weeks which means it’s not just a one time shot and you’re done. Ouch! And that’s just the beginning preparation.

Next will be the removal of your eggs. Of course, the doctor will need to be sure of the right time to do so and will do this by monitoring to be sure to catch the eggs at the right time. Your system has been stimulated to produce many more eggs than normal. You will get another shot before ovulation is due. Then, when all is ready, the doctor will use a needle to remove the eggs.

Finally, you will have to wait for a few days while the fertilization process goes on in the lab after which you come back for the implantation. Usually you will get more than one fertilized egg implanted. You will be at risk for a multiple birth if everything works right. About 1 in 3 pregnancies after IVF are multiple pregnancies. The risk of premature delivery is increased and recent research points out that IVF babies have increased health risks even later in life.

Depending upon your age, the chance of becoming pregnant after IVF is roughly 10 – 30% at an average cost of $10,000 to $12,000 or more for each treatment cycle.

Having a tubal reversal could be a much better option. The success rates for tubal reversal can vary depending upon your chosen surgeon. This makes choosing the best tubal reversal doctor and center a matter of utmost importance. At Chapel Hill Tubal Reversal Center, where they publish their specific pregnancy rates after a tubal reversal, you will see that it is an overall 69%. Your potential success rate will depend upon several things including your age, tube length left and type of ligation procedure used. The good news is that once the surgery is done, you get to try over and over again to “make a baby” without having to pay any more money. The cost for a tubal reversal procedure varies widely throughout the US. At Chapel Hill Tubal Reversal Center, the cost is $5400 to $5900.

Which choice will be the best for you? If you decide to get a tubal reversal, get one from the best trained of tubal reversal doctors. Just visit the Chapel Hill Tubal Reversal Center web site to get the facts that you need. You will even find a tubal reversal message board for help and advice from other women like you.