Aggregated News
Women in Canada undergoing fertility treatments should be aware of a rare but potentially life-threatening complication, according to new guidelines being issued for the nation's doctors.
Injectable drugs used to stimulate a woman's ovaries to produce multiple eggs for fertilization can lead to ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome — a condition in which the ovaries swell and fluid leaks into the abdominal cavity and chest.
Most cases of ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome, or OHSS, are mild. But deaths have been reported in severe cases, according to guidelines published this week by the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada, and the Canadian Fertility and Andrology Society — the group representing Canada's fertility specialists.
The goal is to provide doctors who suddenly encounter a case with guidelines on how to quickly recognize and manage the condition, said Dr. Paul Claman, principal co-author and medical director of the Ottawa Fertility Centre.
The syndrome only occurs "about a week after the eggs have been popped," Claman said. That can create problems when patients live far from the treating fertility clinic.
"When it comes to the management...
Injectable drugs used to stimulate a woman's ovaries to produce multiple eggs for fertilization can lead to ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome — a condition in which the ovaries swell and fluid leaks into the abdominal cavity and chest.
Most cases of ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome, or OHSS, are mild. But deaths have been reported in severe cases, according to guidelines published this week by the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada, and the Canadian Fertility and Andrology Society — the group representing Canada's fertility specialists.
The goal is to provide doctors who suddenly encounter a case with guidelines on how to quickly recognize and manage the condition, said Dr. Paul Claman, principal co-author and medical director of the Ottawa Fertility Centre.
The syndrome only occurs "about a week after the eggs have been popped," Claman said. That can create problems when patients live far from the treating fertility clinic.
"When it comes to the management...