Miscarriages- Reproductive Endocrinologist?

I second the Doodys. I worked with Dr. Kathy. I like the location (Bedford), I loved the staff, and when it comes time for DH and I to TTC again I will be making an appointment with the Doodys once again.

Best of luck to you :)

I am sorry for your losses. I have experienced this myself and I know how difficult this time is.

I highly recommend you see a specialist. They will go through all the testing with you that will determine what is going on in detail. Almost too much detail sometimes. I don't know where you live but I would recommend The Doodys in Bedford. It is called the Center for Reproduction. They are a husband and wife team and they are world renowned. We had friends from Portugal who were told to come here.

I have used them myself. I had four doctors before them run tests and try things and they all concluded that I would never be able to have a child. Well, Kathleen Doody was able to determine all of my problems (I have three)which no other doctor saw. I now have four healthy children (7,3 and infant twins). Enough said.

Have u been screened for celiac/gluten intolerance? It can contribute to miscarriages as the body just can't manufacture all the necessary "ingredients" for a healthy fetus due to nutritional deficiencies from malabsorption. And, it is likely because the immune system is hyper-reactive in the case of autoimmune diseases and thus it can't "downgrade" enough (which is the norm during pregnancy) such that it doesn't recognize the fetus as a foreign body.
Here's an article on the topic (from the NIH - not a random website): http://celiac.nih.gov/ReproductiveProblems.aspx

If your doctor doesn't think this is the issue, I strongly recommend you get tested on your own: www.enterolab.com

The majority of doctors were taught this is rare - it is not - it's one of the most common undiagnosed genetic diseases today. And, they're finding that the majority of folks are asymptomatic, so you do NOT have to have an overt GI symptoms to have this disorder - the refer to it as "silent celiac disease".

Hi M..
You don't mention your age, but if you are over 30, I would switch to an endocrinologist for sure. We have been going to Dr Michael Putman at Baylor Dallas. I have had two successful IVF cycles with Putman and we have a perfect 2 1/2 yr old boy and are now 3 months pregnant with twins.
I'll tell you why I like him vs others in the Metroplex.
1) Dr Putman was President of the North American board of infertility - it is his passion to teach and assist couples in having children
2) Baylor Dallas and Putmans office operate by Christian values and thus have guidelines in place that minimize the numbers of embroys transferred and they do not do or believe in selective reduction. Other docs in Dallas may have better numbers but it's because they will implant a very high number of embryos leaving you with a reduction choice which would be a heartwrenching position to be in.
3) Putman never once asked me about money and didn't even know what the charges were. His staff, of course, will provide you with all of the cost details but making money is clearly not his focus. I have heard with other drs that you have to attend a financial seminar and get pre-approved to be able to afford the services which ticked me off. Putman is not the least expensive but he and his embryologist, Lily, are just amazing.
4) Putman has 4 patents for surgical tools for womens surgery including the robotic tool he used for us to implant the embryos in the most precise method and one he used when trying to do tubal surgery on me. He is brilliant, kind and compassionate.
5) The plan and medication for your treatment will be conservative and planned especially for you. There are no 'cookie cutter' plans like some places were they put you on a standard round of meds. The tests are very specific to your situation and Putman will always try the least invasive method to help you acheive and keep pregnancies first. You don't just jump to IVF.

Good luck to you. It is a very big decision and I can't even express in words how grateful I am to Dr Putman and Lily and how I feel like they are miracle workers. I cried when I had to leave their office because we were sent back to my regular obgyn once we have successful sonograms at week 8. I will forever be indebted to them.

I have never had a miscarriage, so I won't pretend to know what you are going through. My prayers and sympathies for your terrible loss.

I have hypothyroidism, found by my new ob/gyn and we were prego a week after starting armour thyroid.

Also, I am a cancer survivor and have learned a lot about progesterone failure. In the last 20 yrs it has been the #1 cause of miscarriage, called luteal phase failure. Did your doctor check your progesterone with a saliva test? If he did a blood test, you are not getting a picture of the bio-available progesterone, which is what your body uses to sustain a young pregnancy. The readily available progesterone is bound to the hemo and red blood cells, not in the serum part of blood that is tested traditionally. You may test in the 'normal' range for progesterone and still not have enough bio-available to sustain pregnancy.

My info is from several sources, but the easiest one to understand has been from Dr. John Lee's books called "What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Premenopause". You can check out some of the info above at his free website johnleemd.com.

I am hosting a seminar next Saturday in Carrollton, TX with my ob/gyn. We will be discussing progesterone, NFP, etc. I can send you a flyer if you are interested. I would love to see you and at least pray with you. Write back if you would like a flyer.

Take care,
L.

M.,
I'm sorry for your loss, I know it's hard. I had several too before my first baby. However, it's not unusual to miscarry several times. Especially under 12 weeks. You didn't say how many weeks you lost your babies, and I know it doesn't matter, it's still a loss... but it probably wasn't anything to do with you. I know none of this helps either....

Have your doc check your B12 level and your Thyroid. Hang in there and know that everything will work out.

M.,

I don't know how long you have been trying or how old you are, but I would suggest you see my fertility Dr.

Dr. James Douglas in Plano
http://www.ivfplano.com/

I have had 6 MC for various reasons. It was a long quest with one molar pregnancy, bicornuate uterus, and blood clotting disorder which did not show up in lab tests. I have to take heparin to maintain a pregnancy. I do have a gorgeous gift in my daughter and I'm eternally grateful to Dr. Douglas. Dr. Douglas was my second fertility clinic and I have had no MC with his office. It took 3 cycles to get Elizabeth, but we did it!

If you want any more information or just need to talk, give me a shout. Good luck and God bless!

M.,
So sorry to hear about your losses. I have had 4 miscarriages in the last 18 months - but we do have a healthy 2 1/2 year old. I would see a reproductive endocrinologist. It can't hurt. I've had all sorts of testing done and my OB/GYN did not pick up that I tested positive for abnormal MTHFR - which is an enzyme that processes folic acid and somehow relates to blood clots - I had a baby die at 20 weeks b/c of a blood clot that kept growing. All the other miscarriages were prior to 7 weeks. Dr. Samuel Chantellis at Presby Dallas looked at the same lab work and saw this, b/c it's what he's trained to do while an OB/GYN is really trained to care for the mother and fetus after conception.
I'm now on extra folic acid, B6 & B12 and will take blood thinners once I get pregnant again (and I'm very hopeful I will).
All this is a long way of saying that an RE is more experienced with fertility issue and if nothing else another set of eyes to give you input.

Good luck and God Bless.

K.

I went through seven years of infertility and 5 different Infertility doctors..

I highly recommend

1. Dr. Sy Q Le in Irving.

2. Dr. Samuel Chantillis in Dallas

Both are the very best and so kind.

Do not give up... I know I've been there.. I suffered four m/c's myself..
J.

M.,

I totally understand where you are coming from with the miscarriages. I am really sorry for your loss. My husband and I had a hard time wondering why also. All of mine and my husbands labs were within normal range. We just didn't understand. The doctor that I was going to when I had them told me that they are more common than they seem. And, if I were to have 3 or more then there is most likely a problem. I was not satisfied with that answer. So, I decided to get me completely healthy and not concentrate so hard on wanting to have a baby. (I tend to lean a little more towards the natural aspect of health, not alot of medicines.) About 6 months ago my husband and I had the talk on whether or not I should get back on birth control. I ended up being late 2 days after that, and being pregnant. I am 6 months pregnant, and it has been a successful one so far. I am going to a high risk doctor for my doctor, not my old ob/gyn. I really feel like he has really shed some light where it was needed. I guess what I am trying to say is, you need to do what is right for you. Don't get too frustrated. And, ultimately you need to make sure that you are completely healthy. There are many reasons for a miscarriage. But the one that you have the most control over is you (mental and physical). This is what has helped us. Good luck to you.

Dr. Sam Chantilis at Presby Dallas is hands down the best repro. endocrinologist in Dallas. I would call him on Monday and go see him asap. His number is ###-###-####. I would not think you need to start with a geneticist just yet. There could be so many factors other than genetics that are causing your miscarriages. I had 5 miscarriages before I had my precious twins baby girls. His practice is wonderful and he is very caring. I do not have good things to say about The Doody's however. It is a sweat shop as far as I am concerned. Good luck to you and never give up. You will have your little blessing before you know it. Just be patient.