fertility treatment BLOG - IVF Zentren Prof. Zech
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Genetics in reproductive medicine

Background and Significance

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Genetic disorders may cause severe diseases in humans and are known to have adverse effects on fertility, which may even lead to miscarriages. A closer look into these genetic disorders suggests that there are two main reasons for this:
Chromosomal disorders and gene mutations.

In chromosomal disorders, a distinction is made between numerical anomalies (changes in chromosome number – aneuploidy) and structural anomalies (changes in chromosome structure – e.g. translocations). According to experts, these chromosomal alterations are responsible for around half of all spontaneous miscarriages.

Gene mutations involve changes to the genetic makeup of a single gene, gene segment or several genes, resulting in so-called monogenetic or polygenetic diseases. One of the best-known examples of such a disease is cystic fibrosis – also known as mucoviscidosis – which is the most common inherited monogenic disease in Western Europe.

The linking of reproductive medicine and genetics is thus becoming more and more important. In this respect, it is worth mentioning the well-known term Pre-Implantation Genetic Diagnosis (PGD).

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Towards happiness of fatherhood

TESE – sperm retrieval procedure for “in vitro fertilization”

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IVF treatment (IVF/ICSI/IMSI) involves the fertilization of the egg cell by a sperm outside the female body in the laboratory. In some cases, however, sperms have to be collected directly from the man’s testes during a minor surgical intervention called TESE – “Testicular Sperm Extraction”.

The TESE procedure is used in men with a very low sperm count (cryptozoospermia, OAT-syndrome) or no sperm at all in the ejaculate (e.g. due to blocked seminal ducts).

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“From the first second…”

…Companion of couples undergoing fertility treatment – the Info Center team of the IVF Centers Prof. Zech

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As a service point for help-seeking childless couples, the Info Centers, at the private clinic Group’s seven European locations, are an important counseling and information platform for couples before, during and after the treatment. Every day, hundreds of couples concerned readily make use of this service and receive the relevant answers to their questions in a quick and easy way (by phone or e-mail).
The counseling services are provided in a results-oriented and efficient manner. This is made possible by the comprehensive expertise and the dedication of the employees. Guidance and useful tips are just as integral to the advisory service as the providing of assistance in strongly emotional situations.

What couples considering IVF treatment want to know

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“Understanding the miracle of nature”

What contributes to the success of fertility treatment

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Many couples wish for nothing more than to have their own child. But for some of them, their wish to conceive a child has remained unfulfilled, despite prolonged efforts to achieve a pregnancy. But, regardless of how different the underlying causes may be, today there are promising therapeutic options in reproductive medicine.

Counseling: Why is it important?

Since fertility treatment can be an emotionally challenging situation involving potential risks, with no guarantee that the outcome will actually be successful, the couple should, as a first step, seek detailed advice.
One possibility could be to participate in one of the information evenings as offered by the IVF Centers Prof. Zech, for instance. The evening’s topics range from the description of the fundamentals of human reproduction to the analysis of the causes of unwanted childlessness to the possibilities opened up by modern reproductive medicine. The participants have the opportunity to get in touch with medical specialists, ask any questions they may have and voice their personal concerns.
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Unwanted Childlessness and Stress

What do we know about the links existing between them?

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Illnesses, environmental pollutants, ageing are, inter alia, factors which may impair fertility. Unwanted childlessness is often due to a combination of several causes. To date, we know far too little, for example, about the role played by psychological strain. Couples wishing to conceive are usually under great pressure and are often exposed to high stress.
A number of questions arise at this point:

If this stress is caused by the unfulfilled desire to have children, then what about couples who have not been diagnosed with fertility disorders?

Is it possible that in both cases stress can reduce the chances to conceive a child? Read more…

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“If the stork needs a little help”

Course of IVF treatment using donor eggs

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There are many reasons why women cannot achieve a pregnancy with their own oocytes. In addition to medical reasons (e.g. cancer treatment, genetic diseases, premature menopause etc.), today, there is an increasing number of cases where socio-economic causes are at the root of the problem. Women often delay having children beyond the age of 35. From age 40, it is getting more and more difficult to achieve a pregnancy.
In situations of this kind, egg donation could be an opportunity for the infertile couple to overcome unwanted childlessness. The relevant legislative framework conditions vary from one State to another.

But how does an appropriate treatment actually look like? Read more…

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“About Experts, Nutrition and Expectant Parents”

What we should know about our diet

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Nutrition also plays in the fulfillment of a wish for a child an important role and is a key factor in maintaining good health (for more information, see our BLOG post “You are what you eat”).
In a recent interview with the American nutrition expert, David L. Katz (Professor of Medicine at Yale University School of Medicine) published in the ZEITmagazin, the subject has been discussed at length.
How we can grow old in good health can be summarized under a few headings:

Anyone who has a poor diet, does not take physical exercise, is overweight and is a smoker lowers their chances of leading a long and active life.

This might be compared to the chances of conceiving a baby, since unhealthy lifestyle patterns may impair fertility both in women and men. An example: When it comes to sperm quality, oxidative stress is mainly responsible for damages to the sperm cells (25-60 % of DNA damage).
Smoking, infections or alcohol consumption have a triggering effect on this kind of stress. The formation of oxidative stress can be counteracted by a healthy lifestyle, physical fitness and the right diet, thus improving fertility. Read more…

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Heart’s desire: Having a Child

Variety of treatment options as an opportunity for infertile couples

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“How many times have we discussed this matter and have spent endless nights browsing the internet to find firsthand reports by other couples dealing with unwanted childlessness. Now it is about time to give luck a bit of a boost. The decision is made: Tomorrow we are going to call the IVF center and make an appointment.”

Such thoughts occupy many couples before they have their first consultation. Their wish to have a child remained unfulfilled, despite many years of endeavoring to achieve a pregnancy. In the same way as the underlying causes are different, so are the treatment options that are available today for use in reproductive medicine. The couples should gather comprehensive information on the subject, since the legal provisions vary from one State to another.

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“A chance, that a child may arise”

Psychological support for couples with unfulfilled desire for children – Part 2

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Fertility-Treatment BLOG interview with clinical psychologist Mag. Karl-Heinz Brandt:

(Click here to read the first part of the interview)

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Mag. Karl-Heinz Brandt(l) | Rene Winsauer(r)

Mr. Brandt, the IVF Centers Prof. Zech offer their patients the possibility to have access to psychological counseling. We have already talked about situations in which this option may prove to be very important. Now I will address in greater detail the social environment and how it may impact patients dealing with fertility issues.

Buzzword: “world wide web”. How do the couples concerned deal with information from the Internet, for instance information provided by community forums?
Mag. Brandt: Let me start with a comparison: The proverbial other side of the coin can also be observed with respect to Internet fora. Firstly, the positive side: Forums usually offer useful tips and competent assistance, and in addition give the couple the feeling that they are not alone with their concerns: “We are not the only ones being treated for this“. Exchanging experiences and information with others concerned may become very important, especially for women. The reason for this is that it is often hard for them to talk about the issue with the people in their surroundings. As their husband/partner is the only person to whom they can talk about the matter, it is often too much for him to handle. Such forums offer a valuable platform for discussion and exchange of experiences, in which women console, support and advise one another.

Let us now turn to the negative side: Theme forums may seem confusing at times, because users post their individual experiences with a strong personal and emotional touch, leaving out important aspects of the very complex issue of unwanted childlessness. Such statements can be perceived as “suggestive truths” by the readers. In this way, women can drive themselves “crazy” – which may very well be carried to extremes.

How would you describe the influence exerted on the couple by their immediate social environment, for instance by family and friends? Read more…

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“It is NOT in my blood…”

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The saying “It is in my blood” usually refers to character traits that are inborn or inherited and/or correspond to our “inner nature”.
Again and again, scientific findings in the field of genetics have been highly praised by the media – including a study from 2011 which assumed that women with blood group 0 have a two-fold greater risk of diminished ovarian reserve compared to women with blood group A or AB. Serum FSH level tests served as the basis for fertility assessment.

Does this mean that women with blood group 0 have to worry more about their family planning than women with non-0 blood groups?

In order to shed light on this question, we have conducted a retrospective single center study at the IVF Centers Prof. Zech – Salzburg involving 1889 IVF cycles that were analyzed with respect to blood groups and evaluated according to the different age groups (for more details on the respective study, click here). We did not investigate the serum hormone levels but the number of oocytes retrieved during follicular puncture, the mature oocytes (metaphase II oocytes) as well as the fertilization rate and the pregnancy rate. Study outcome: Read more…


IVF Zentren Prof.Zech
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