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No one know how many IVF mistakes there are

Filed under: IVF — Alan @ 8:00 am

A new report shows that there are possibly many mistakes being made at IVF clinics, however, the report is inconclusive since there is no solid evidence.

Government inspectors issued a warning about IVF’s, in that patients are not protected against mistakes, which led the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority to admit that there are ways that the clinics could improve.

However, the organization claims that they have made strides forward to fix the problems which will either be proved or discounted next week when the report concerning the embryo mix-up at the London Guys and St. Thomas Hospital is published.

The report will also test to see if clinics are regulated fairly by the HFEA which is another criticism that IVF clinics are facing from government inspectors.

The mix-up that led to the investigation occurred in February when three women had to have their embryos destroyed because they were fertilized with the sperm of the wrong men.  The mistakes echoed the earlier mistakes of a clinic in Leeds which resulted in a white couple giving birth to a multi-race child.

The HFEA will not comment on either set of mistakes until the investigation report is released.  A licence committee is due to meet on Monday to discuss what happened and where the mistake lay so that the same mistake can be prevented in the future.

Although the watchdog organization for IVF clinics claims that such incidents are still extremely rare a patient safety expert and a leading fertility lawyer warn that there could be more mistakes that are not reported.

Harley Street Women’s clinic in health scare

Filed under: Uncategorized — Alan @ 7:42 am

One of the top fertility clinics in Britain suffered a health scare Sunday night after it was discovered that unsafe and unscreened donor sperm was used to produce test tube babies.

The sperm was found to have a genetic abnormality in it that would raise the risk of having a child with health problems or a miscarriage.

The health scare occurred at the Harley Street London Women’s Clinic, which failed to follow fertility guidelines that all sperm be screened before it is used.

As a result of the mistake, which occurred earlier in 2009, at least one couple is thought to have had a miscarriage.

The patient anonymously stated to the press that the occurrence has left behind a ‘bitter taste.’

The couple was forced to destroy 22 embryos that were fertilized with the sperm after paying £15,000 initially for the treatment. The clinic paid the couple to have another round of the fertility treatment completed overseas.

It is estimated that up to 11 women may have had their embryos created with the unsafe sperm.

The HFEA confirmed that the LWC was the site of the blunder and stated that after the discovery the clinic was forced to cease its use of donor sperm until all stored samples were checked.