Pacific Fertility Center Physician Helps the Zuckerbergs Start a Conversation about Miscarriage

Now that they’re expecting their first child, Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan are taking the opportunity to raise awareness about a challenge facing many prospective parents: miscarriage. Carolyn Givens, MD, a physician at Pacific Fertility Center and an expert on miscarriage, helped start the conversation through an interview with ABC7 KGO news.

Chan and Zuckerberg, the CEO of Facebook, know about the trials of miscarriage from personal experience. Chan, 30, had three miscarriages during their three-year marriage. By sharing their experience, the Zuckerbergs hope to start a more open dialogue on the topic of miscarriage.

In her interview, Dr. Givens explained that miscarriage is very common, often a way for nature to take care of embryos that are chromosomally abnormal or unable to sustain a normal pregnancy.

Fortunately, there are steps prospective parents can take to lower the risk of miscarriage. An obvious one is to attempt childrearing earlier because the risk of miscarriage increases with age.

Another is to use comprehensive chromosome screening (CCS) to identify an embryo or embryos with the very best chance of producing a healthy pregnancy. As early adopters of this highly sensitive genetic technology, PFC has used CCS with patients to reliably test all 23 pairs of chromosomes for abnormalities before the transfer of any embryos. CCS not only helps prevent miscarriages and chromosomal abnormalities, it improves implantation, pregnancy rates, and the health of babies.

“After multiple miscarriages, the Zuckerbergs were able to achieve a successful pregnancy,” said Dr. Givens. “However, other couples who have had multiple miscarriages may benefit greatly from the assistance of CCS, which requires the use of in vitro fertilization (IVF) to transfer the healthiest embryo.”

About Pacific Fertility Center
Pacific Fertility Center is an international destination for male and female fertility treatment and care. It provides an extensive array of fertility treatment options ranging from intrauterine insemination (IUI), intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) and in vitro fertilization (IVF) to cutting-edge technology such as vitrification and genetic testing of embryos. For more information: www.pacificfertilitycenter.com.

About the Pacific Fertility Egg Bank
The Pacific Fertility Egg Bank is a full-service frozen donor egg program located in San Francisco, CA. Through its relationship with Pacific Fertility Center, the Pacific Fertility Egg Bank can offer clients from around the world extremely high IVF success rates, greater convenience, and lower costs.

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Media Contact
Renee H. Scudder, MS
415-249-3662
scudder@pacificfertility.com

Pacific Fertility Center
55 Francisco Street, Fifth Floor
San Francisco, CA 94133

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