Blogs

Researcher Spotlight: Winifred Mak, MD, PhD

By Tonya Carey posted 4 days ago
Be the first person to recommend this.
Grant Project Title : Establishment and characterization of miscarriage-specific human trophoblast stem cells Grant Amount : $40,000 Significance : 750,000 to 1,000,000 miscarriages happen in the United States annually. For couples who experience pregnancy loss, the cause is usually cytogenetic in 60% of cases, such as trisomy and monosomy. However, the cause of the remaining euploid miscarriages is usually not found. Therefore, there is a significant need for more studies to investigate new causes of human pregnancy loss, especially recurrent miscarriages, where 50% of couples will not find a cause. To elucidate the molecular mechanisms of miscarriages in ...
0 comments

ASRM Research Institute Corporate Partner Highlight: EMD Serono

By Tonya Carey posted 5 days ago
Be the first person to recommend this.
EMD Serono has joined forces with the ASRM Research Institute to provide two outstanding grant opportunities to professionals in reproductive medicine – the Diversity Fellowship Research Award and the Nursing Professionals Research Award . Both grants are currently open, with a proposal submission deadline of January 16th, 2023 . Read further to find out more about EMD Serono and their partnership with the ASRM Research Institute. Who is EMD Serono? EMD Serono - the healthcare business of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany in the U.S. and Canada -aspires to create, improve and prolong life for people living with difficult-to-treat conditions like infertility, ...
0 comments

Researcher Spotlight: Gary Smith, PhD, HCLD

By Tonya Carey posted 6 days ago
Be the first person to recommend this.
Grant Project Title : Human Embryo Mosaicism: Towards Understanding Longitudinal and Developmental Genetic Concordance Between Embryonic Trophectoderm, Inner Cell Mass, and Stem Cells Grant Amount : $666,000 Significance : Our hypothesis is that blastocyst regional cell genetic concordance is low, embryonic mitotic segregation errors are frequent, and that collectively, these biological factors contribute to embryonic mosaicism and limitations in predicting offspring genetic normalcy. This hypothesis is being addressed with two specific aims: 1) to elucidate regional genetic concordance/discordance within human preimplantation blastocysts trophectoderm, inner ...
0 comments

Welcome to our newest ASRM Research Institute Advisory Committee member - Dr. Sarah England

By Tonya Carey posted 13 days ago
Be the first person to recommend this.
Please join us in welcoming our newest ASRM Research Institute Advisory Committee member, Dr. Sarah England! Dr. England is the Alan A. and Edith L. Wolff Professor of Medicine and Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Washington University. Dr. England’s laboratory has three main lines of investigation: One focus is to determine how ion channels in the myometrium modulate uterine excitability and contractility during pregnancy. Second, her lab is investigating the role and regulation of the oxytocin receptor in controlling uterine excitability. Lastly, they are studying how disruptions in endogenous circadian rhythms affect pregnancy outcomes. Her laboratory ...
0 comments

ASRM Research Institute Grant Partner Highlight: The Jones Foundation

By Tonya Carey posted 09-15-2022
Be the first person to recommend this.
A note from the Howard and Georgeanna Jones Foundation: The Howard and Georgeanna Jones Foundation for Reproductive Medicine is a not-for-profit organization that solicits funds from the general public to support scientific and medical research in the field of reproductive medicine. In addition to providing research grants to deserving scientific investigators, the Foundation Board of Directors is prepared to serve in an advisory capacity to the agencies it supports. We may also sponsor seminars which would be designed to evaluate public policy issues related to reproductive medicine and are proud to be the nation’s preeminent medical research foundation focused ...
0 comments

Save the Date for Giving Day 2022 Benefiting the ASRM Research Institute!

By Tonya Carey posted 09-13-2022
Be the first person to recommend this.
ASRM is excited to announce Giving Day 2022 will be on October 25th ! It’s time for us to come together as a community, celebrate our accomplishments, spread the word of our good work, and make a difference in the reproductive health and medicine community. Please SAVE THE DATE and join ASRM for Giving Day 2022 as we unite to help eliminate disparities in access to reproductive care for all. You can help by making a donation on Giving Day—October 25th! Every tax-deductible donation, no matter the amount, makes a difference and supports this year’s mission to improve access to care through research, specifically funding research to better understand disparities ...
0 comments

ASRM Research Institute Discovery & Innovation Grants Letter of Intent Opens August 22nd, 2022

By Tonya Carey posted 08-22-2022
Be the first person to recommend this.
The ASRM Research Institute (RI) Discovery & Innovation Grants letter of intent opens August 22nd, 2022 . This year Investigators can submit a letter of intent for either the ASRM Discovery & Innovation Grant or the ASRM/Howard and Georgeanna Jones Foundation Investigative Scientist Award . Investigators who meet eligibility, with expertise in reproductive health and science, are encouraged to submit a letter of intent for consideration. To be considered, the letter of intent, with all required information in PDF format, must be submitted to the ASRM Research Institute ( research@asrm.org ) no later than 4:00 PM CST Friday, October 7th, 2022 ...
0 comments

Researcher Spotlight: Werner Neuhausser, MD, PhD

By Tonya Carey posted 07-21-2022
Be the first person to recommend this.
Grant Project Title: Identification of transcriptomic and epigenetic coordinates for post-implantation human embryonic development Grant Amount: $666,000 Significance: Post-implantation human embryonic development beyond the blastocyst stage is pertinent to a variety of disorders in human reproduction such as implantation failure, fetal defects, placental insufficiencies and early pregnancy loss. However, our knowledge of cell-lineage decisions in the post-implantation human embryo remains severely limited and there is a critical need to explore the molecular control underlying the formation of trophoblast, epiblast and hypoblast lineages and the events ...
0 comments

Meet the ASRM Research Institute Advisory Committee

By Tonya Carey posted 06-10-2022
Be the first person to recommend this.
As the ASRM Research Institute moves into its next phase, we are proud to announce the formation of the Research Institute Advisory Committee. This advisory committee, established in December 2021, comes on the heels of the incredible work that the ASRM Research Task Force and the Strategic Research Steering Committee started back in 2017 and completed in 2019, with the development of the Research Blueprint and formation of the ASRM Research Institute. The new Research Institute Advisory Committee will work with ASRM leadership and staff to guide the robust research agenda that was outlined in the Research Blueprint. “At the Institute’s core, we are committed ...
0 comments

ASRM Research Institute Corporate Partner Highlight: Ferring Pharmaceuticals

By Tonya Carey posted 06-10-2022
Be the first person to recommend this.
Ferring Pharmaceuticals values innovation; they know that with the right resources and partnerships we can advance the field of reproductive medicine and fuel additional research. Ferring Pharmaceuticals has supported and continues to support philanthropic investments in the ASRM Research Institute. In 2020, Ferring Pharmaceuticals partnered with the Society for Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility (SREI) and the ASRM Research Institute to establish the REI Fellow’s Young Investigator Research Award. The purpose of this grant award is to support REI fellow-specific research in reproductive medicine. Who is Ferring: Ferring Pharmaceuticals is a ...
0 comments

ASRM Research Institute Grant Partner Highlight: Recurrent Pregnancy Loss Association (RPLA)

By Tonya Carey posted 06-10-2022
Be the first person to recommend this.
The Recurrent Pregnancy Loss Association (RPLA) was founded in 2019 by Megan Hanson and Ben Burnham in the wake of their sixth miscarriage; hoping to transform their frustration and pain into something positive and help prevent other couples from enduring the heartache they experienced. In 2020, RPLA approached ASRM to establish and help fund a research grant focused specifically on recurrent pregnancy loss. The first grant funded was recently awarded to Tsegaselassie Workalemahu PhD, MSc (University of Utah). Dr. Workalemahu’s research program is titled " Inherited Genetic Variants and Unexplained Recurrent Pregnancy Loss ”. A little more about RPLA: ...
0 comments

Researcher Spotlight: Eve Feinberg, MD

By Julie Beckham, M.B.A posted 06-10-2022
Be the first person to recommend this.
Grant Project Title: Characterizing Fertility Concerns among Women in Academic Medicine and Evaluating the Economic Impact of Fertility Preservation for Deferred Reproduction Grant Amount: $50,000 Significance: Although women are more likely than men to pursue a career in academic medicine, they also tend to leave academic medicine, reduce their work hours, or reroute their careers during their childbearing years. In addition, many female physicians delay childbearing, and studies have documented higher rates of infertility, obstetric complications, and childlessness in female physicians relative to the general population. Female physicians report ...
0 comments

What is Non-Obstructive Azoospermia (NOA)

By Thomas Masterson, M.D posted 12-16-2021
Be the first person to recommend this.
What is Azoospermia? Azoospermia is the condition where there is no sperm in the ejaculate and affects around 1% of the population and 10% of infertile men[1]. This is not to be confused with aspermia, where there is no ejaculate. Men with azoospermia usually have normal ejaculate volume, so microscopic analysis of the fluid is required to make the diagnosis. Azoospermia is divided into two categories: obstructive azoospermia (OA), where sperm is blocked from reaching the ejaculate, and the more severe form, non-obstructive azoospermia (NOA) where there is an issue with sperm production. Azoospermia is diagnosed after microscopic analysis of two properly collected ...
0 comments

Ideas When Speaking with Clinics about ASRM Guidelines

By Christina Miller, J.D posted 07-25-2019
Be the first person to recommend this.
Question : A Reproductive Endocrinologist (clinic) that refers me business does not follow ASRM recommendations for psychological evaluations in all third-party cases. As a mental health professional providing services to this physician’s patients, what should I do?   Answer : It’s tough to bite the hand that feeds you, but sometimes it is necessary in order to meet professional responsibilities and deliver the best possible standard of care for patients. As professionals, we know our professional ethical standards require us to put our obligations to our client above our own financial gain. But, the ASRM guidelines do not rise to the same level of ...
0 comments

Options for Reproduction After Vasectomy

By Peter Stahl, M.D posted 01-31-2019
Be the first person to recommend this.
Peter J. Stahl, M.D. Columbia University College of Physicians & Surgeons, New York-Presbyterian Hospital, New York, NY, USA Approximately 5% of men who undergo vasectomy subsequently change their minds and decide to pursue biological paternity. Historically, if men wanted to father a child after vasectomy, the only option available to them was to undergo vasectomy reversal (VR). The development of intracytoplasmic sperm injection (IVF/ICSI) in 1992 enabled reproduction using surgically retrieved sperm. Today, men who desire fertility after vasectomy have a choice. They can elect VR, or they can choose to pursue IVF/ICSI using surgically retrieved sperm. ...
0 comments

Fertility Preservation

By Akanksha Mehta, M.D.,M.S posted 01-31-2019
Be the first person to recommend this.
Akanksha Mehta, M.D., M.S. Department of Urology, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA Fertility preservation (FP) in men refers to the process of saving or protecting sperm or testicular tissues, so that they may be used to father biological children in the future. Although a cancer diagnosis is the most common reason to consider FP, the indications for FP are, in fact, much broader: genetic disorders like Klinefelter syndrome, which results in an irreversible decline in testicular function; endocrine (hormone) disorders that require testosterone replacement therapy; abdominal or pelvic surgery with the potential to affect ejaculation; spinal cord ...
0 comments

Treatment Options for Patients with Ejaculatory Dysfunction

By Robert Coward, M.D posted 01-31-2019
Be the first person to recommend this.
R. Matthew Coward, M.D., FACS Assistant Professor of Urology, UNC School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, N.C. Director of Male Reproductive Medicine and Surgery, UNC Fertility, Raleigh, N.C. Despite receiving much less attention than erectile dysfunction and other male fertility problems due to its sensitive nature, ejaculatory dysfunction is among the most common sexual disorders worldwide and can be one of the most frustrating sexual symptoms a couple can experience. What is ejaculation? The purpose of ejaculation is to deposit sperm into the vagina for reproduction, and most men with these problems seeking an evaluation are younger patients desiring fertility. ...
0 comments

Vasectomy Reversal

By Mary Samplaski, M.D posted 01-31-2019
Be the first person to recommend this.
Mary K. Samplaski, M.D. Director, Section of Male Infertility, Andrology  and Microsurgery USC Urology Background: The process of vasectomy reversal (VR) involves restoring continuity to the male reproductive channels. In layman’s terms, this may be thought of as “re-connect the tubing”. Up to 5% of men undergoing vasectomy will eventually pursue reversal. While the majority of VRs are post vasectomy, these same surgical techniques may be applied to men with other vasal obstructions. Obstructions of the epididymis and scrotal portion of the vas deferens that can be corrected with VR include male reproductive tract scarring, such as blockages from birth, ...
0 comments

Happy New Year

By Sara Mooney, B.A posted 01-14-2019
Be the first person to recommend this.
​ Welcome ARM members. I am so excited that we have launched our online forum. This will be a place that you pose questions, concerns or relevant articles to reach a vast ARM community. Since this is the first post of the New Year, I thought it would be fitting to ask what your goal is for 2019 for your practice. For me, it is keeping our retention to 15% or less for 2019. 2018 was a disaster year for retention for our practice and I am hoping to not repeat that.
0 comments

Egg Donor photos

By Charlene Murdoch, R.N posted 10-17-2017
2 people recommend this.
I am new to this group so hello to all.  I have a question for all of the third party coordinators.  Do you allow the recipients to have photos of the donors?  Also, do you post photos on your database?  If you do is it just baby pictures, just adult, or a combination of both?  Thanks!
0 comments