Having a baby is one of the biggest dreams of any married couple. Some have been blessed with but one out of 6 Canadians aren’t.
Dr. Mike Ripley is an obstetrician/gynecologist and reproductive endocrinologist in Halifax. He works at Atlantic Assisted Reproductive Therapies (AART), a clinic in Halifax specializing in assisted reproductive treatments. It was established 30 years ago by Dalhousie University’s Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology and became a private not-for-profit clinic in 2005. The clinic’s staff includes medical director Dr. Renda Bouzayen and Dr. Heather Cockwell, plus a team of embryologists and nurses.
It’s the only clinic in Nova Scotia providing treatments such as in vitro fertilization (IVF), frozen embryo transfer, intrauterine insemination and egg freezing. Most patients are Nova Scotians, though the clinic also serves patients from Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland and Labrador, where IVF is unavailable.
According to Dr. Ripley, it’s tough to see people struggle with infertility. It is so rewarding for him to deliver good news to couples that they are having a baby.
The first IVF baby was born on 1979. With the rapid development of technology, the process of assisted reproduction has been improved. In this era, they are now able to test the genetics of embryos to determine if they’re genetically normal or not.
The clinic treats couples of all sexual orientations and genders, as well as individuals wanting to start a family on their own or preserve their fertility before undergoing chemotherapy or gender transition.
For Dr. Ripley, helping patients find their way through a complicated process is what he enjoys most about his work. “For an embryo transfer, you use a transparent catheter and place the embryo into the patient’s uterus. The embryo is microscopic, so you have to check the catheter under a microscope to make sure it went in. Nine months later, there’s a baby. It’s magical.”
More to the story from https://www.yourdoctors.ca/blog/health-care/dr-ripley
Reference:
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