Advanced ultrasound techniques: 'one-stop fertility diagnosis' visit said to save time, money.(Gynecology)

UNIVERSAL CITY, CALIF. -- A quick, noninvasive, comprehensive evaluation of fertility can be accomplished in a single patient visit using advanced ultrasound techniques, Dr. Stuart Campbell said at the annual meeting of the Obstetrical and Gynecological Assembly of Southern California.

"It may seem like a strange thing, but it works," asserted Dr. Campbell, a pioneer of ultrasound in obstetrics and gynecology and director of the Centre for Reproduction and Advanced Technology in London.

The "one-stop fertility diagnosis" visit offered by Dr. Campbell's group eliminates the need for a laparoscopy or hysterosalpingogram, instead relying on three-dimensional ultrasound with color Doppler imaging and transvaginal hysterosalpingo-contrast sonography (HyCoSy).

Couples schedule a visit to the clinic on day 10-12 of a 28-day cycle. The man undergoes a semen analysis while the woman undergoes a pelvic examination, blood test, detailed ultrasound, and HyCoSy procedure. Results are available within an hour of completion of the tests, saving couples the inconvenience of repeated visits as well as substantial costs.

The approximate total cost of a visit to the one-stop clinic is 316 British pounds ($576.60), just one-third of what is estimated to obtain a fertility diagnosis through the conventional British system.

Dr. Campbell acknowledged that his talk focused on the "British slant," since patients normally face long waits for fertility assessment within that nation's national health care system. His one-stop clinic abbreviates that wait and gives couples an answer quickly. But he noted that the approach would save dollars and time in the United States as well.

The ultrasound examination is used to gauge oocyte quality, luteal function, ovarian reserve, endometrial receptivity, and perform an assessment of the uterine ...