Couples search for answers

With a scarcity of centres, high fees and growing number of hopeful parents seeking treatment overseas, the path to pregnancy can be costly.

ABU DHABI // Childless couples wanting in vitro fertilisation treatment (IVF) are forced to play a waiting game. In Dubai, only one clinic offers fertility treatment. It is free only to Emiratis. And for those expatriates who can afford the expensive therapy, the patient lists can be long. Dubai is the only emirate that has banned private clinics from offering IVF treatment. While Dubai couples do have options - they could join would-be parents waiting for treatment at home, go to clinics elsewhere in the UAE or join a growing number of people seeking IVF treatment abroad - none are ideal. Many private clinics in other emirates are frequented by clients from Dubai, who are forced to travel to find the care they need. The rates charged at these clinics are steep. But for those longing for a child, the non-existent waiting lists are appealing. The New Medical Centre, a private clinic in Abu Dhabi, offers the IVF procedure for Dh16,000 (US$4,356). Dr Kiran Mehndiradda, a fertility specialist, said only a handful of IVF procedures were performed there each year because "IVF is the last option". Public IVF centres in the other emirates offer more affordable rates for expatriates, but the waiting lists are lengthy. At the Ministry of Health's Tawam Hospital in Al Ain, couples can expect to wait for six months for IVF therapy, said Dr Walid Sayed, a gynecologist and IVF specialist. The treatment is about Dh10,000 per couple, but this is expected to rise to match the price charged at private clinics. He has treated couples from Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Ras al Khaimah and Fujairah, as well as from outside the Emirates. In the past, most patients would seek treatment in other countries, but Dr Sayed said the situation was changing. "Abroad used to be the standard," he said, adding that IVF clinics in other countries typically offered the same level of care and success rate as clinics in the UAE. "It's an illusion. If you have a T-shirt that is made in Germany and one that is made in the UAE, people will choose the one made in Germany. They think it is more clean, more modern, more professional. "Maybe this illusion helps some patients." There were 1,500 procedures completed last year and the demand is increasing. There are some health issues affecting prospective parents in the UAE. Polycystic Ovary Syndrome, which can lead to infertility, affects approximately 40 per cent of Arab women. Obesity also adversely affects fertility in both men and women, and 24.5 per cent of men and 39.4 per cent of women are obese in the UAE, according to the World Health Organisation. Changes in social norms over the past century have also reduced fertility rates. Women are having fewer children, and also choosing to have children later in life. Women over the age of 35 have a decreased chance of falling pregnant, and an increased risk of miscarriage. They also run a greater risk of having a child with a developmental problem. Men also have concerns, and are more likely to be infertile the older they get. One doctor was known to have replaced the sperm of some of his clients with that from healthier men. Dr Aysha al Roomi, from the Health Committee on the Federal National Council, said: "The doctor wants to have high success with his clinic and [if] he knows the husband has weak sperm, he just brings another sperm without telling the husband and wife. "This was happening in Dubai before. They stopped one doctor from working in Dubai, but he's still working in Sharjah now." The use of donor sperm is illegal in the UAE, but the practice is common in other countries. As many as 50 per cent of couples seeking IVF therapy opt for international care. "Many people go overseas and they stay there for months and sometimes years," said Dr Roomi. Europe and the US are common destinations. For those on tighter budgets, however, cheaper treatments are available in India and Africa. Couples must also factor in transportation and hotel costs, and those with limited financial means might find IVF treatment at home or abroad impossibly expensive. [e-mail] * With additional reporting by Jen Gerson