Posted by Larry Grunfeld, MD on June 06, 19100 at 07:26:36:
In Reply to: To DR. GRUNFELD: IVF vs REVERSAL SURGERY posted by Melissa on June 06, 19100 at 01:21:56:
It sounds as if you are a good candidate for a tubal reversal. Make sure that the physician who performs it is comforatable with microsurgery. Remember, you can still have IVF if you prefer not to have surgery. Success rates and costs are comparable. Of course the advantage of tubal surgery is that once your tubes are corrected you can have more than one child. The advantage of IVF is that it is non-surgical.
Larry Grunfeld, MD
: My age is 29 (dh also 29) and I had a very small portion of my tubes removed (1.4 cm and 1.2 cm)
: All the dr's opinions that I have received regarding reversal have been very positive...they think I should get preg easily. Dh fathered both of my boys (ages 3 & 5) so we believe his sperm count to be normal. We would have that checked before IVF. Now knowing my age/history, would you be inclined to recommend IVF still?
: Thank you very much,
: Melissa P.
: : This depends upon your age and the type of tubal ligation performed. IVF is excellent at aiding pregnancy after tubal ligation. Surgery is still performed, but is invasive. As a general rule, IVF has a higher success rate than surgery.
: : Larry Grunfeld, MD
: :
: : : : My husband and I are at the ends of our ropes. We just cannot make the decision on whether or not to go ahead with a tubal ligation reversal. It seems that I am just too involved with the decision and now I feel overwhelmed; like I want someone else to decide for us...has anyone been there? We just want a child; it seems so simple, yet there are so many roads to take to get there. Adoption is another option that we have considered. Where did you turn? What did you do? Your input is greatly appreciated. Maybe some tiny thing that you say will help in our decision making. Even if we don't do what you did, you could still be of great help! Thank you very very much!
: : : : Melissa =0)
: : : : [smile]
: : : Melissa,
: : : Have both of you checked out okay in all other ways (i.e. your husband's sperm count, are you ovulating on schedule, etc.) If you have no other problems at all I would have tubal reversal. From what I've heard there is great success with this surgery. With IVF there are no guarantees - it took me three attempts before I finally got pregnant. What you have to think about is how MANY IVF's you'll be open to go through before you say enough. I don't know how much tubal reversal costs (I believe this is done via laparoscopy so I'm guessing it's around $5000) but IVF costs approx. $10,000 per attempt. If there had been any chance in the world for me to have gotten pregnant naturally I would have done whatever necessary to have gone that route ... IVF is NOT fun. Just my two cents.
: : : Debi