Oklahoma Couple Welcome Daughter to Family Through IVF

For many who dream of growing their family, fertility challenges can be heartbreaking. Oklahoma City couple Tamika and Peter Wagner started trying to have a baby in spring 2021. After a year of trying, the couple decided it was time to seek fertility treatments. Tamika, who was 30 years old at the time, found a clinic with immediate availability and began treatment.

The fertility treatment started with intrauterine insemination (IUI), also known as artificial insemination. During sexual intercourse many sperm will die before they reach the cervix and have the chance to fertilize an egg. The more sperm in the uterus during ovulation, the higher the chance that some will make their way to the fallopian tubes.

In IUI, sperm is “washed,” a process where the healthy, motile sperm are separated from other components – nonmotile sperm, enzymes, proteins, and fluids. The healthy sperm is concentrated in a special solution called Human Tubal Fluid (HTF) to provide the best-quality sperm and to increase the chance of fertilization. The prepared sperm is then placed into the uterus using a thin, flexible catheter. The process only takes a few minutes, and the patient can return to normal activities after the procedure.

Tamika and Peter underwent an IUI in June 2022, but it didn’t result in a pregnancy. The reproductive specialist told Tamika that she had a low ovarian reserve, meaning that she had a low egg count, and advised her to begin in vitro fertilization (IVF).

In Vitro Fertilization

Approximately 11% of women and 9% of men of reproductive age in the United States have experienced fertility problems. Infertility is common and affects as many as 1 in 6 couples.

During In Vitro Fertilization (IVF), sperm and egg are combined in a lab, outside of the body. The process has four main steps:

1. Medicine is used to stimulate the ovaries to help them develop multiple mature eggs.
2. The mature eggs are retrieved from the ovaries using a thin needle guided through the vagina. Sedation is used so that the process is pain-free.
3. The sperm and mature eggs are combined in a lab. If there is a problem with fertilizing an egg, sperm can be injected directly into the egg in a process called intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI).
4. A few days after the eggs are fertilized one or more embryos are placed in the uterus.

If more than one embryo is implanted, the chance of pregnancy increases but it also increases the chance of a multiple pregnancy. If many embryos are created during the process some can be frozen for later use. This means you don’t have to go through another egg retrieval cycle.

Tamika started the hormone medicine to stimulate her ovaries in November 2022. Of the five eggs that were retrieved, four of the eggs were mature. She was advised to undergo another round of egg retrieval to increase the number of eggs they could fertilize, but Tamika and Peter decided to transfer their care to OU Health fertility and reproductive expert Dr. LaTasha Craig, M.D., professor and Section Chief of the Department of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility at the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine.

Embryo Implantation at OU Health

Tamika had an egg retrieval at OU Health in April 2023. Eight eggs were retrieved, but only three were mature enough to undergo fertilization. The four eggs that were retrieved at the reproductive clinic Tamika had initially gone to were transferred to OU Health, and all seven eggs were fertilized with Peter’s sperm.

An embryo begins to develop as a single cell, and by day three it has usually grown into a 6-8 cell stage embryo. It continues to grow and by day 5-7 it reaches what is called the blastocyst stage. The blastocyst consists of layers of cells that will eventually become the structures supporting and nourishing the developing baby. Transferring a single embryo at five days removes the risk of the patient having a multiple pregnancy and as the embryo is further developed at the blastocyst stage, there may be higher implantation rates.

Following fertilization, Tamika and Peter had four embryos, but only two made it to blastocyst. They made the decision with Dr. Craig to go ahead with a five-day embryo transfer using only one embryo and storing the other to be implanted later.

The embryo transfer was done on May 1, 2023, and on May 6, Tamika had a dream she was pregnant.

“I’d had dreams periodically of someone handing me a baby, and I was always confused, thinking that I wasn’t even pregnant,” said Tamika. “This time I dreamt I was pregnant, so when I got up in the morning, I decided to do a pregnancy test. I left it on the bathroom counter and asked my husband to check it. When he told me there was a faint line I didn’t believe him. I thought, he doesn’t know what he’s talking about!”

The pregnancy was confirmed, and Tamika and Peter were delighted.

A Plot Twist

Tamika and Peter had booked a 10-day Mediterranean cruise two years earlier and with Dr. Craig’s approval they went on the trip. The cruise would end in time for Tamika to attend her six-week ultrasound. They had a fantastic time until right before the cruise ended, when Tamika got COVID. This pushed her ultrasound out by a week.

At Tamika’s first ultrasound, she received devastating news — she had a molar pregnancy.

When an egg and sperm join incorrectly at fertilization, it creates a noncancerous tumor called a molar pregnancy. The tumor looks like clusters of tiny water-filled sacs. Normally in pregnancy, a placenta will form to nourish the embryo as it grows. In a molar pregnancy the placenta doesn’t form normally and can’t support a developing embryo. Molar pregnancies can cause serious complications if left untreated.

The procedure to remove the tumor was booked for June 14. Tamika was put under anesthesia for the procedure and later, when she awoke, was told that Dr. Craig needed to speak to her. Tamika was worried — maybe something had gone wrong in the procedure?

But the news was incredible. The ultrasound showed a fetus with a heartbeat. OU Health maternal-fetal medicine specialists confirmed a healthy pregnancy and explained to Tamika that what had looked like a molar pregnancy was possibly a bleed that had clotted and had blocked the view of the heartbeat in the original ultrasound.

“In the operating room, I was shocked and excited to see that heartbeat and fetus,” explained Dr. Craig. “I couldn’t wait to tell Tamika and Peter the great news.”

A Beautiful Gift

Tamika was closely monitored by the experts in maternal-fetal medicine for the first half of her pregnancy. After a frightening start, Tamika had a ‘textbook’ pregnancy.

On January 30, 2024, at 42-weeks pregnant, Tamika gave birth to Amira — a beautiful and healthy baby girl. She is thriving and meeting all her milestones.

“Amira is such a joy, and we love her so much,” said Tamika. “I appreciated the way OU Health handled everything. They managed everything so well and everyone who contributed to my care was so professional and communicative. They all had a hand in the process and in my daughter being here.”

Is Fertility Treatment Right for You?

For many couples who are trying to conceive, it can take a year to get pregnant. Fertility treatment may be right for you if:

• You’re younger than 35 and have been trying to get pregnant for at least a year.
• You’re 35 or older and have been trying to get pregnant for at least six months.
• You’re trying to get pregnant, and have very painful, irregular or no periods.
• You’re trying to get pregnant, and you have a condition like endometriosis, pelvic inflammatory disease or a past miscarriage/s.
• You and your partner think there may be a contributing male factor including a history of testicular trauma or past infertility with another partner, or if your partner is taking testosterone treatment.

Talk to your health care provider if you want to grow your family and think you may need fertility treatment.

“Most patients worry that they will need IVF like Tamika, but less than 10% of patients go on to IVF,” explains Dr. Craig. “At OU Health we are able to help many patients with less aggressive and much less expensive fertility treatments. It is worth the time to get an appointment and hear about the different options you have.”

Learn more about Fertility Services and Reproductive Medicine at OU Health or speak with one of our experts about fertility at (405) 271-1616.