Embryo Mix-ups Stun Parents in La., Ohio
Denmark's William Kvist escapes tackle from Mark van Bommel of the Netherlands during the Euro 2012 soccer championship Group B match between the Netherlands and Denmark in Kharkiv , Ukraine, Saturday, June 9, 2012. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader) / Matthias Schrader
A suburban New Orleans hospital has suspended operations at its in-vitro fertilization center due to concerns that dozens of frozen embryos were mislabeled.
Ochsner Health System spokeswoman Amiee Goforth said Friday that hospital officials have no reason to suspect embryos were implanted in the wrong mother.
But the hospital is contacting around 100 couples that may have been affected by the apparent labeling mix-up at the Elmwood-based in-vitro fertilization center.
According to Ochsner officials, the problem occurred at the point in the IVF process when embryos that are to be stored for later use are placed in freezers filled with liquid nitrogen, reports CBS News correspondent Mark Strassmann. They are supposed to be bar coded, color coded, and labeled so nothing can go wrong.
"There are embryos that appear to be mislabeled or others cannot be accounted for," said Chief Medical Officer Joseph Bisordi.
Ochsner admits some of the patients they talked to have requested genetic testing to be sure. Doctors say that will be done at Ochsner's expense.
Today's news comes on the heels of another remarkable mistake at a fertility clinic, Strassmann notes. In Ohio, Carolyn Savage revealed that she was implanted with an embryo belonging to another couple. She plans on giving the baby over to the biological parents.
"You just can't believe you're in a situation where this is unfolding the way it is, it's unreal," Savage said.
The 40-year-old woman from the Toledo suburb of Sylvania is due to give birth within the next two weeks. The couple say they will give the baby boy over to his biological parents, who live in Michigan.
In Louisiana, Ochsner's chief executive officer, Dr. Pat Quinlan, said in a statement that the center will not be accepting new patients while the center conducts an internal audit of the program.
Other than DNA tests, all Ochsner can offer their patients is an apology, Strassmann reports.
"We are disappointed in ourselves and what we have learned today and we are deeply sorry," Quinlan said.
CBS/ AP Ochsner Health System spokeswoman Amiee Goforth said Friday that hospital officials have no reason to suspect embryos were implanted in the wrong mother.
But the hospital is contacting around 100 couples that may have been affected by the apparent labeling mix-up at the Elmwood-based in-vitro fertilization center.
According to Ochsner officials, the problem occurred at the point in the IVF process when embryos that are to be stored for later use are placed in freezers filled with liquid nitrogen, reports CBS News correspondent Mark Strassmann. They are supposed to be bar coded, color coded, and labeled so nothing can go wrong.
"There are embryos that appear to be mislabeled or others cannot be accounted for," said Chief Medical Officer Joseph Bisordi.
Ochsner admits some of the patients they talked to have requested genetic testing to be sure. Doctors say that will be done at Ochsner's expense.
Today's news comes on the heels of another remarkable mistake at a fertility clinic, Strassmann notes. In Ohio, Carolyn Savage revealed that she was implanted with an embryo belonging to another couple. She plans on giving the baby over to the biological parents.
"You just can't believe you're in a situation where this is unfolding the way it is, it's unreal," Savage said.
The 40-year-old woman from the Toledo suburb of Sylvania is due to give birth within the next two weeks. The couple say they will give the baby boy over to his biological parents, who live in Michigan.
In Louisiana, Ochsner's chief executive officer, Dr. Pat Quinlan, said in a statement that the center will not be accepting new patients while the center conducts an internal audit of the program.
Other than DNA tests, all Ochsner can offer their patients is an apology, Strassmann reports.
"We are disappointed in ourselves and what we have learned today and we are deeply sorry," Quinlan said.
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Frankly, with your attitude I sure hope you don't have kids because it's apparent you regard a baby that is not from your genes as a nuisance.
Frankly, you're an idiot. I do have kids and it was a great experience. And it wouldn't matter to me whether the baby had my genes or not. All I was saying is that if a woman is having great problems having a child, has to go through agony to be able to have one, FINALLY gets pregnant at 40 years old, knowing that it could very well be a one time thing, great chances it could be born with defects, it would be DEVESTATING to find out it wasn't yours and having to try all over again, if that was even possible.
If a woman is desperate to have a child, I doubt that just having the experience of giving birth is going to fill the void. Get a grip!
And I REALLY dislike it when people put words in my mouth that I DIDN'T say. SCREW OFF!
Learning that you cannot have kids because of issues that are out of a person's control is something that is very difficult for the entire family emotionally. Some people accept that fact, while others choose to accept the risks involved with in-vitro. I would recommend that before you start judging people, you place yourself in their shoes and try to imagine the pain and hope that is involved.
If I was this woman, I would be more than a little upset. I'd be suing! The mix-up is one thing but the fact that she is 40 years old and went through a pregnancy with a child that wasn't hers isn't good. That means that she will have to try again. SHE'S 40 YEARS OLD! Most woman at 40 are not wanting to have a child. The chances of the child having problems, like "Downs Syndrome" are good. Also, she shouldn't be getting pregnant again right away. So that means even more time passing by.
The fact is, though, that the surrogate mother is going to forever have a tie to the baby, and the genetic parents are also forever going to have a tie to the mother. It's perfectly possible that the genetic parents fertilized embryo would have not taken hold in the genetic mother, and that a surrogate would have been the only way for them to have a baby. Also, it's possible that this may be the only baby that the 40 year old woman may ever have - and having the experience of having a baby even though it wasn't hers and she knows she isn't going to keep it is still worthwhile.
Some of the happiest times in life are when a baby comes, and it doesn't matter if your going to keep it, or give it away, or if it was yours or not - you are giving life to a child who would otherwise not have ever lived - and even if the child leaves your life and is raised by another couple, you will know that you, and nobody else, gave it life. Frankly, with your attitude I sure hope you don't have kids because it's apparent you regard a baby that is not from your genes as a nuisance.