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Boys Now Enter Puberty Younger, Study Suggests, But It’s Unclear Why

A large study released by the American Academy of Pediatrics suggests that boys are entering puberty earlier now than several decades ago — or at least earlier than the time frame doctors have historically used as a benchmark.

The study, widely considered the most reliable attempt to measure puberty in American boys, estimates that boys are showing signs of puberty six months to two years earlier than was reported in previous research, which historically taught that 11 ½ was the general age puberty began in boys. But experts cautioned that because previous studies were smaller or used different approaches, it is difficult to say how much earlier boys might be developing. Read full article.

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New IVF Screening Can Turn Fertility Clock Back 10 Years

An IVF process that could give a woman in her early forties the same chance of becoming pregnant as a 32-year-old has been developed by scientists. They say the screening treatment could boost a 42-year-old’s odds of having a baby from 13 per cent to  60 per cent. It works by picking only the embryos most likely to create a healthy foetus, slashing the odds of miscarriage.

Crucially, it also involves the embryos being frozen for at least a month after IVF to allow the woman’s reproductive organs to return to normal. Scientists believe that the powerful fertility-boosting drugs given during IVF can harm the embryo if it is put into the womb too soon. Read full article.

 

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Study Finds Ten Years After Being Gestational Carriers, Women and Families Doing Well

Researchers speaking at the 68th Annual Meeting of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine today unveiled a study showing that a decade after serving as gestational carriers, both the women who served as gestational carriers and their families were doing well and had positive feelings about the experience.

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Fertility Preservation for Cancer Patients: Demographic Disparities in Counseling and Financial Concerns Are Barriers to Utilization

Several teams of researchers will present new survey data covering the use of  fertility preservation for cancer patients at the Sixty-Eighth Annual Meeting of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine.

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New Egg Donor Informed Consent Tool (EDICT) Demonstrates and Documents Prospective Donors’ Understanding

Prospective egg donors must assimilate a great deal of information in the informed consent process, yet it remains difficult to determine the extent of their actual understanding of egg donation and its potential risks.  To address this need, researchers at the University of California San Francisco have developed and are presenting at ASRM’s Annual Meeting a two-part assessment of informed consent effectiveness, the Egg Donor Informed Consent Tool (EDICT).