Fertility Centers of Illinois Offers Human Egg Freezing For Patients With Special Circumstances Wanting To Preserve Their Fertility.

GLENVIEW, Ill. -- First practice in Chicagoland to receive Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval for oocyte (egg) freezing

The Fertility Centers of Illinois (FCI) has expanded its services to include human egg freezing for patients who may need to preserve their eggs for later use. This would include patients undergoing cancer treatments such as radiation, chemotherapy or surgery that could limit future reproductive potential. FCI becomes the first fertility practice in the Chicago area to receive approval from an Institutional Review Board (IRB) for the use of egg freezing or cryopreservation techniques in a controlled study environment where quality, informed patient care is at the forefront.

A fertility practice that receives an IRB approval goes through a rigorous process including a review of the proposed study and a review of possible risks associated to patients. Informed consents from subjects in the study are documented, and subject selection is made using specific criteria as it relates to possible vulnerability to unforeseen influences.

"Receiving an IRB approval is significant in the evaluation of any new medical technology because it provides standards and quality control," explains Juergen Liebermann, PhD and Scientific Director, IVF Lab River North at the Fertility Centers of Illinois. "Our goal is to offer patients new solutions using only the highest standards."

Cryopreservation or "freezing" of human eggs is considered a recent advanced technology to help extend human fertility. While the pregnancy rate using frozen eggs is still relatively low, the embryology team at FCI uses "vitrification" which is a rapid freezing technique to help bolster higher egg survival and therefore higher pregnancy rates. Vitrification is the process of cryopreservation using high concentrations of cryoprotectorant with rapid freezing to solidify the cell into a glass-like state without the formation of ice crystals. Ice crystals within an egg can cause damage or cryoinjuries. FCI routinely uses vitrification with great success for patients undergoing in-vitro fertilization (IVF) procedures who have more embryos than are required for a fresh embryo transfer. Vitrification maximizes their chances of cryopreserved embryos' being thawed at a later date and used successfully to achieve pregnancy.

"We're in the business of helping people build their families. FCI will continue to explore new techniques and technologies that will provide our patients with new solutions and new hopes of becoming parents," says Aaron Lifchez, M.D. and President, Fertility Centers of Illinois.

According to Dr. Lifchez, early results suggest that vitrification is the most effective way to cryopreserve eggs. "The largest study to date reports a 68.6% survival rate using vitrification," he says.

Dr. Lifchez also points out the potential future benefits of egg freezing and storage for patients, including:

--Women at risk for losing reproductive function as a consequence of certain types of surgery or the treatment of cancer by chemotherapy or radiation therapy.

--Women who are concerned about producing an excess number of embryos as a consequence of IVF.

--Women who are only able to achieve pregnancy through IVF using donor eggs and would have the opportunity obtain those eggs from an egg bank in much the same way that sterile males can obtain semen from a sperm bank.

--Women who are interested in the preservation of fertility and are concerned about their "biological clock."

World-renowned scientists and cryobiologists, including Dr. Juergen Liebermann from FCI, recently participated in the First World Congress Meeting in Bologna, Italy to specifically address the basic science and clinical application of vitrification and human oocyte cryopreservation. This was the first global meeting of its kind devoted to this topic. Only scientists recognized as the leading experts in this new technology were invited to participate.

"An important result of this meeting was the development of an international registry to collect and analyze more data on oocyte cryopreservation from different centers around the world," explains Dr. Liebermann, who also presented research at the Italy meeting.

The Fertility Centers of Illinois, S.C., is one of the nation's leading infertility treatment practices, providing advanced reproductive endocrinology services in the Chicago area for over 25 years. In addition to a team of nationally recognized reproductive physicians who collaborate with each other to stay current on the latest technology and procedures, FCI patients have access to many other unique support services such as professional counseling from a licensed, Ph.D. clinical psychologist, patient advocates and innovative financial options. FCI's multiple offices are conveniently located throughout the Chicago area.

For more information visit http://www.fcionline.com or call 1.847.680.9411.