Arthur Castelbaum

As stated before, RMA is fine if you have an easily fixable problem. Otherwise, RMA, and especially Castlebaum are content to just go through the motions and then immediately move to IVF when the typical treatments don't work. Our least personal experience was with Castlebaum.

Expect blunt information and insensitive jokes if you are sensitive . Do your research beforehand and have questions prepared. Question the statistics of treatments.

Dr. Castlebaum immediately suggested IVF after we had gotten pregnant with our most recent IVF. The manner in which he discussed it was very cavalier and detached. When we finally asked about IVF packages and what he suggested for our situation, his response was "I always like a money back plan, " as if we were purchasing material goods. This was a huge turnoff and a big reason for leaving RMA altogether.

Castlebaum basically told us to request what we wanted if we weren't going to do IVF. He did not think outside the box or offer alternate options. We tried 3 IUIs with progesterone as this had worked (though resulted in miscarriage) with our 4th IUI. On the final IUI ,I asked if there was anything else and he said we could perhaps try Follistim (no real explanation why). We also added Ovidrel, and he told us it was up to us which day we used it rather than monitoring and figuring out the most optimal time. All 3 IUIs resulted in negative tests.

Nurses provided basic information but didn't offer helpful suggestions or further explanation. Really just felt as though they read from a script.

 We really felt like a number there. This is something we've realized more as time goes on, especially with our current RE who is so specific and personal. A strength would be that overall,RMA is very successful. However, this is only true if you have an easily fixable issue. Friends have gotten pregnant there within only a few cycles. But with us, they seemed content to just "go through the motions," and when the typical methods didn't work, they went right to IVF as though it was no big deal. Everything seemed "scripted" in a way, without really trying to look for an issue and individualize our care.

Copays for office visits were $20.

No comment

Dr. Castelbaum is a very experienced, knowledgeable, caring, and personable doctor. He is straightforward about his decisions and doesn't shy away from giving bad news when he needs to. He takes the time to answer questions during appointments and will schedule consults as needed. He is very responsive by email, as are the nurses who work at RMA.

Don't shy away from asking questions, even if you are bumping up against the limits of knowledge in the field of Reproductive Endocrinology. If he doesn't know the answer, he will tell you. He is a great doctor with a great deal of experience, but there are a lot of unknowns in this field, and being a well-educated patient is so important.

Dr. Castelbaum and the RMA staff are busy, but take the time to greet and talk with everyone. This is especially true in the surgery center--the nurses there are truly kind and caring. The office usually runs on time and seems to prioritize getting patients in and out of the office within a reasonable amount of time. If there is something you need, they will put you in touch with the right person to get your questions answered.

My first protocol was a typical antagonist protocol. It went worse than expected, given my age and other lab test results, but still yielded mature eggs that fertilized with ICSI. We decided to have another egg retrieval in order to bank more embryos prior to doing a transfer. Dr. Castelbaum recommended a micro flare protocol, which unfortunately yielded no mature eggs. We are trying again with another antagonist protocol.

The RMA nurses are excellent and very communicative. They are also very compassionate and take the time to get to know you as a patient. They are quick to respond to email and phone calls. In any case, it is still important to take the time to keep yourself organized when it comes to your medication supply and dates for upcoming cycles, and notify them quickly if you notice any problems or discrepancies.

RMA as a clinic is excellent. They are open every single day of the year, so you never have to worry about cycle timing due to the clinic being closed. Their surgery center is also very comfortable and easy to access, given that it is attached to their KOP office and shares much of the same staff. The nurses and other staff in the surgery center are great. The doctors rotate, so you may not see the same doctor during each visit, but I do not mind this feature because it allows the clinic to be open every day.

My wife and I originally went for me to get inseminated and after many heartbreaks we turned to Dr. Castlebaum for my wife's insemination. After two iui procedures she became pregnant with our son. After the nurse called with the results he followed up with my wife to express his excitement. After Tatum was born we sent Dr. Castlebaum a birth announcement he again called us to express his delight and tell us how adorable our son is. To him it is not a job he genuinely wants you to have a baby and just wants to help you along your journey. We had been to another place where all I can describe it as is being cattle herded we were literally just a number and a paycheck and with no fertility coverage that's not what you want. Dr. Castlebaum makes you feel like part of his family and when you're struggling to have a baby that is so important.

Ask him anything he loves questions and he loves to hatch the plan with you. He doesn't tell you what "his plan" is for you instead it's your collaboration.

I am in a same sex marriage and he listens to everything we have said along the way we even went to another doctor for Ivf and when we returned to him for my wife to get iui all he wanted to know was if we were successful at the other office. He's amazing and we will never seek care from anyone else again!

Iui twice with me using letrezol and hcg trigger shot one was positive pregnancy that ended in mc the other did not work. With my wife he did two iui no med assist and the first did not work the second did!

From start to finish they were incredible with the loss and the BFP they were a great source of comfort and compassion I cannot say enough about the staff.

It is bright and welcoming they have separate locations for consultations and where they tell you about billing so it is not all clinical. The rooms are warm and bright and the whole place is very clean. They have artist pictures on the wall a lot having to do with fertility that you can purchase if you like it.

I believe the iui was 1,000 plus the cost of meds but I'm not 100% sure I took a new job and it did have coverage for iui so with my wife there were specialist copay so 40.00 each visit. The sperm cost 890 per vial and we have purchased a total of 9 and if costs between 250-400 to ship.

Dr. Castelbaum is an incredibly intelligent, capable and appreciative doctor. I want to start with that when I came back to visit with both my boys he was so genuinely touched, held each kid and truly appreciates the miracles he brings into the world. He is very straight forward with his information and also doesn't make assumption or judgments. I came from another clinic with unsuccessful IVF cycles and was referred to egg donation. I switched clinics for a 2nd opinion and Dr. Castelbaum was shocked that my previous doctor hadn't don't any type of testing on me to determine why my cycles weren't producing many eggs and why the ones retrieved were abnormal. He immediately ran some testing and did ultimately agree that egg donation was my best bet at having children while being able to experience pregnancy. He's very fact based and delivers matter-of-factly so you have to be okay with that but he also has a warm bedside manner. I loved him and would refer anyone to him. .

The staff, including Dr. Castelbaum always made me feel like a priority. They always welcomed my son in the office during my 2nd cycle, even helping to watch him while I was being seen. They always knew me, my background, my family and the current status of my cycle. They worked around my schedule and always fit me in. They tried their best to make my cycles the most cost effective they could and I honestly couldn't say enough good things about any of them from reception, nurses, billing, and of course, Dr. Castelbaum.

Always knew me and my situation and current status. Very compassionate to what we were going through as patients. I wish I could remember some of their names because they were fabulous.

1st cycle -- approximately $47,000 2nd cycle -- approximately $3,500

Dr. Castelbaum is great. I can not think of a negative even when I probably should be contacting the nurse, if I contact Dr. he always answer my question without hesitation. I have had no disappointments and I have always been treated with respect. Dr. Castelbaum makes me feel very comfortable in not so comfortable situations.

Ask questions if you do not understand. Dr. Castelbaum has patience and will go over anything you need so do not be scared to ask if you don’t know.

Dr. Castelbaum has all my information ready for me. Anytime I ask a question he has an answer for me and does not go looking through notes he knows my situation and I by face.

I am in the beginning stage. We haven’t gotten to my protocol as of yet.

The nurse and office staff are ok but at times they can be rude and very unprofessional at times. They do not always provide the information you need and when you ask they make it seem as if you are getting on their nerves.

This clinic do not offer a patient portal so you have to go to the office for everything. There are several offices for your convenience. You can choose any office that works for you. The office staff can sometimes be rude if you go on a busy day and they show little concern once you become a patient but not active at the time. It seems they are only concerned with active or potential patients.

I am uncertain. I started off with insurance but I am now self pay and am waiting to get exact self pay amount.

Dr. Castelbaum will only transfer one embryo if you are under a certain age (35).

Dr. Castelbaum has a wonderful personality that matched my wife and I so well. He is clearly knowledgeable and was honest with us about his recommendations. He was willing to hear our concerns and seemed to genuinely care about us during the process.

He has been very affirming of LGBTQ+ identified patients and has a great sense of humor.

Dr. Castelbaum has been warm, friendly, kind, and funny. He made a point to ask about what my wife and I did for living and seemed to recognize us and remember us during our meetings. He was also very affirming of us as a same-sex couple.

We did 4 rounds of IUI with clomid and an ovidrel trigger for each attempt. I was not diagnosed with any infertility - but since we are a same-sex couple, we went to RMA. Insurance does not cover any of our treatments, so the next recommendation is IVF.

Melissa is the person we saw most often and I cannot say enough about her intelligence, compassion, and care. She’s the best!

We live in Central PA - so it’s nice having the clinic so close. It was slightly inconvenient that any surgical procedures, as well as anything on the weekend, needs to be done at the King of Prussia office - but it could be worse!

We had to pay for everything except for diagnostic tests.

Dr castelbaum is extremely empathetic and caring. He explained thoroughly his concerns with my pcos and extreme follicle growths and the chance of many multiples. He gave me choices and his input which I appreciated

Believe in him. As scary as it is, he wants the best for you and to do everybody he can for you he successful

Extremely compassionate. Took time to go over results and the effects of my PCOS

He played with dosage of medication and switched from oral to injectables. He monitored my follicles frequently by ultrasound. Ordered hsg to check for Fallopian tube blockage

Hardworking, helpful, compsssionate. always smiling

Clean, many locations, quick service, team approach, quiet. The staff are always available for questions and helpful in going over billing and procedures if need. The staff can make you smile even after the worst news and work with you over outrageous outstanding bills

Billing was very helpful. They explained the costs with you prior to procedures and go over insurance policy. They are willing to set up payment plans

Great doctor! Very compassionate and caring! Worked hard to achieve a pregnancy and was willing to try anything. Great bedside manner. Took the time to find out different treatment plans and ultimately wanted to help us achieve a pregnancy by any means.

Stay positive. Ask questions.

Very good Bed side manner. Caring and compassionate

Struggled with a thin lining. Dr. Castelbaum attempted numerous protocols to try and thicken uterine lining with different forms of estrogen. Tried Neupogen washes in uterus, vaginal viagara, acupuncture.

Great great nursing staff! Everyone was compassionate and caring. They were right there every step of the way offering encouragement, etc.

Great clinic. Ran smoothly. No issues with any dept. All offices were welcoming! All depts were a plus to work with. Nurses/front desk employees were nice and helpful. Loved going to the different offices.

Extremely costly. Did Donor Egg with a known donor and three frozen embryo transfers.

First cycle he transferred two embryos. Second and third cycle, only one embryo. Moving forward I think one embryo is the new normal to prevent premature birth of multiples.

He explains everything the first visit, gives you options, and if things don’t work he reevaluates. Very kind and was just as happy that we were pregnant as we were! His office was awesome and the nurses were great. I loved everyone there. When I had to see other doctors or the nurse practitioner for procedures, they had the same bedside manner and were great

Ask questions and be open minded.

He was kind and explained everything thoroughly. I wasn’t another number.

We had done clomid and timed intercourse. Letrozole and timed intercourse. Clomid, ovidril, and iui twice.

They were sad when I miscarried and treated me so kindly. They also cheered when I took a test and was pregnant.

Strengths are availability- it was great to go before work and be in and out. No cons but maybe to be closer to where I moved now! Parking was easy and a ton of locations. Hours were great and they literally were open all the time. You never know when you’re going to ovulate!

I completely trust him and know that he is doing everything he possibly can to help me. He is extremely intelligent and experienced. I appreciate his bedside manner and also his sense of humor. Plus he is very gentle and patient

Relax and trust him

He took the time to review everything about my husband and me thoroughly

We tried clomid twice, once with iui, and then switched to femara for two cycles, once with iui

Super friendly and gentle

This office is very organized and thorough. They are very on top of getting back to you with results and responding to any questions. They answer the phones quickly and respond promptly to emails. I have never felt I have waited too long for a response.

Reasonable

I think he’s very conservative

I thought we had a great experience together, if i ever needed to discuss things he was always available. He always went over the procedures and what was at risk. He was also kind and caring. When i became pregnant he was so happy as was I! He told me to come back and visit before and after I have the baby.

If you want the truth go see him

I felt like a human, because they always greeted me by my name

I thought they were great and very understanding! Never been around a great group of people

I thought the clinic was great

I only had to pay for meds and co-pays