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SOCIETY
GEORGIA TODAY
DECEMBER 31, 2021 - JANUARY 13, 2022
In Pursuit of Novelties: Interview with the Head of "Innova Invitro", Dr. Ketevan Osidze
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linic "Inova Invitro" appeared on the Georgian market more than 5 years ago, and during this time was able to easily gain the public's trust by offering them high quality servise. The clinic primarily deals with gynecology and fertility issues, and, over the years, it has earned a reputation as a highly qualified, well-organized clinic tailored to the individual needs of patients. Ketevan Osidze, Head of Inova Invitro, Reproductologist, ObstetricianGynecologist, tells us about the main advantages of the clinic, important news in the field, and other interesting topics. “We are in collaboration with the world leader in our field - the Valencian Institute for Infertility IVI. This contract guarantees that we have specialists with the highest qualifications and results in the embryology laboratory,” Dr. Osidze says. “For their specialist, Hector Huete Ferriz, Georgia is practically a second homeland. Although Georgian embryologists have already established themselves as trusted specialists, Hector is happy to continue to participate in the development of our clinic. Moreover, in our country, patient appreciation for personal work is often seen and is big pleasure to receive it. Several couples are already planning to have a second and third child thanks to his work. It might sound funny to you, but one of the cutest girls told us that she’s going to name her second child Hector. The first, of course, was named after her father-in-law. This young woman is now again pregnant and we are waiting for her second child to be born a girl or a boy.”
WHAT ARE THE MAIN ADVANTAGES OF THE CLINIC? Most of our services are costly, complicated procedures, and the patient along with the authority of the clinic must have the belief of the doctor and embryologist that this fine process will be done professionally and with maximum transparency what will ensure minimal stress for them. Our priority is to make the patient fully aware of possible outcomes, modifications and capabilities. With the knowledge and experience of doctors, the professionalism and diligence of the embryology team is a key prerequisite for our success. It is our greatest comfort and pleasure to be able to follow the innovations of our own field and introduce any new method. With so much innovations,
genetic research is especially evolving. For the fourth year we are successfully completing one of the most difficult procedures: PGT-A and PGT M - studies of embryos. In addition to the theoretical aspects, the delicate performance of embryological procedures is very important. The possibilities of this method are irreplaceable for those who need it; however, the evaluation of indications and the pragmatic necessity in relation to price are not unequivocal and the experience of the physician fully determines the recommendations. The possibility of screening non-invasive embryos for aneuploidy - a procedure that is in the final stages of approbation and introduction to the clinic - would be a methodological step forward for good outcomes.
TELL US ABOUT NOVELTIES IN THE FIELD. It is especially important to refine the freezing methods of biological material - gametes and cells. The introduction of the so-called vitrification method into practice has led to a dramatic increase in the efficiency of in vitro procedures, while allowing us to virtually eliminate the most dangerous complication - hyperstimulation syndrome. Unfortunately, career plans and various social factors cause a woman to face infertility due to a decrease in ovarian reserve and chances of pregnancy. As a way out of the situation, timely vitrification of the gametes - eggs has its role. I would like to take this moment and urge women to apply this method in a timely manner as well, since at a more advanced age, the effectiveness is really drastically reduced. Freezing is also very helpful before largescale gynecological surgeries - despite the reduction in ovarian reserve after surgery, consecutive frozen-warmed embryo transfer (FET) is still very effective.
AS WE KNOW, FREEZING METHODS ARE ALSO NEEDED FOR ONCOLOGY PATIENTS. A separate niche in the use of cryo technologies is to maintain reproductive potential for cancer patients of both sexes. It is gratifying that our colleagues - oncologists, surgeons, hematologists - are increasingly referring patients to us. The fact is that often, after courses of chemotherapy or radiotherapy, irreversible changes develop in the ovarian and testicular tissue and the patient may become sterile. Unfortunately, one study
found that only 32% of cancer patients were aware of the damaging effects of chemotherapy and the presence of vitrification methods. I think journalism should play its role in disseminating this information. In my opinion, it is necessary for the state to be involved in these processes and to allocate partial funding for the given needs of this most complicated contingent.
WHAT DO YOU THINK IS THE KEY TO THE CLINIC'S SUCCESS? I think the in vitro fertilization department is our uniquely strong side. I am happy to share the accumulated experience with new specialists. After outpatient treatment, sometimes the only way is IVF - In Vitro Fertilization, and the patient's greatest comfort if he or she continues treatment in the hands of personal doctor. Detailed knowledge and
analysis of the patient's diagnosis, anamnesis is the key to success. In general, our field deals with such a sensitive topic that it implies a long-term and trusting relationship between the patient and the doctor. We are very grateful to the patients who trust us and follow us in their treatment.
AS WE KNOW, PREGNANCY IS ALSO MANAGED IN THE CLINIC ... Alongside other routine gynecological procedures, I especially like to single out pregnancy management. If the pregnancy of a difficult patient (pregnancy after infertility, pregnant women over the age of 46, women who underwent spontaneous abortions) requires specific management and prevention of complications, in general a pregnant woman without complications should be offered
the minimum necessary services. The strongest ultrasound department and well-maintained laboratory services allow our obstetricians to protect pregnant women against pregnancy complications.
WHAT WOULD YOU SAY TO THE LADIES? I urge women to take prophylactic studies. Pap tests, gynecological examinations and breast ultrasounds must be performed at certain intervals - often in case of pathology, and in case of normal condition - at least once every two years. Fertility issues should be priority and timely planned pregnancy is much better decision then carrier growth or all other reasons. Solving the problems detected timely is easier and ensures a much higher quality of life. I wish you all good health!
The New Year Resolutions Georgia Should Make and Stick To OP-ED BY NUGZAR B. RUHADZE
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ew Year Resolutions are a purely western tradition, but we might use it here in Georgia too if we could think of some useful ones to make that wouldn’t take too much sweat to keep up. As a matter of fact, there is nothing special about the New Year in the United States, except that a new calendar year starts, and Americans tend to make fresh resolutions at the beginning of the New Year. Those resolutions could be of any wording and content, but it is a must that they contain a certain desire and potential to improve one’s lifestyle, anything along the lines of “listen more, talk less,” “go to sleep with kind thoughts,” “try to treat people well on social media,” “don’t keep grudges,” “work out twice a week,” “read a book a fortnight,” “lose weight,” “drink water regularly,” “cut out alcohol,” “stop smoking,”, etc. Such resolutions are made by regular individuals, but the resolutions made by a nation should probably be more solid and should certainly be more impressive. If Georgia wants to embark on better
Image source: newsweek.com
social and economic practices than it did last year, it has to change the unfavorable political measures into more effective ones. For this, the nation should make the following resolutions and do its possible best to live up to their undelayed fulfillment without failure: get the failing demography up and going so much that by the end of the year, Geor-
gia’s population is a minimum five million people; give its boys and girls the kind of education that easily translates into wellbeing, and do this by mobilizing the crème de la crème of the nation into the army of productive teachers; bring the annual economic growth up to 10%, and let it directly reflect on the lifestyle of our workforce and their fam-
ilies, seeing them starting to believe that the high labor productivity is not a utopia in this country; arrest prices on food, medication and utilities, and if they can’t be curbed, let at least the wages keep up with runaway costs; handle inflation not by putting additional boosting funds into the money market, but by making new internationally sellable products; overcome the remaining poverty by creating new jobs and retraining the personnel accordingly, thus giving another chance to people who fell out of the labor market due to the absence of relevant qualifications; give impetus to tourism by refreshing the old infrastructure and building new, as well as constructing better roads and using local talent and hosting capacities; create conditions for banks to let them serve people with lower interest rates and higher-quality banking products; find a way to get rid of the irksome political polarization that is universally killing the opportunity to build mutually beneficial cooperation between the opposing parties; handle the future membership in NATO and the EU so masterfully that Russia desists eyeing Georgia’s national borders and whetting her appetite to gobble us up; talk to Russia in a way which excludes arrogance
on the one hand and obsequiousness on the other, the discourse being conducive to reinstating our temporarily forfeited lands in peace and good faith; go to mills and factories to work in lieu of all kinds of parades, manifestations and demonstrations; eradicate criminal activity so much that the good citizens of Georgia relax and feel free to leave their cars and houses unlocked without being afraid of high-jacking and burglary; introduce a strict and lawful architectural planning of our big cities, thus keeping our beautiful landscape from hideous views; learn how to keep the streets clean from animal droppings and other litter so that our niche in the western family of nations becomes more natural and, consequently, accessible; stop abusing each other as vehemently as we do over social media; be proud of the ancient Georgian culture and the heroic national past, but look forward into the future as well, being conscious that retrospect is good but prospect is even better; learn English, but remember that keeping up the purity and respectful practicability of our own Kartuli is no less important. Bring all these resolutions to life, and Christmas will feel merrier and the New Year happier.
