Aspire Fertility - San Antonio (Prelude Network clinic)

I would recommend Dr. Aimee Browne to anyone seeking fertility care with no hesitation. She is a wonderful doctor, very warm, calm, and compassionate, but also very matter-of-fact, rational, and an expert in her field. She was very thorough in our work-up and we were able to identify the reason we had been unable to get pregnant (male factor infertility). Dr. Browne was able to communicate very effectively and help calm out nerves during our very first IVF cycle. We were able to get pregnant from a fresh embryo transfer during our very first cycle with her and had a healthy baby boy. We wanted our IVF cycles to be as "natural" as possible due to our religious beliefs. We did not want to create more embryos than we were willing to have children. In other words, we wanted to transfer any embryos we created. The egg retrieval resulted in 29 health eggs; together we decided to try 5 eggs with ICSI and created 2 fresh embryos. 1 resulted in our first child; the other was a frozen transfer with a different protocol that did not result in pregnancy. Based on the unsuccessful 2nd transfer, Dr. Browne changed our next cycle to be more similar to our first transfer (mimic a natural fresh transfer) and we had a 2nd successful pregnancy. We had created 3 additional embryos with our 2nd ICSI attempt using another 5 eggs and plan to transfer the next embryo this year. Our IVF treatment process is untraditional; our understanding is that most couples use all of their retrieved eggs and have genetic testing to determine the best options, but this typical treatment plan didn't work for us. Dr. Browne fully supported our religious beliefs and how we sought to base our treatment around creating only the embryos needed. We never felt judged or pressured to do anything in our treatment that we didn't feel comfortable with. I would whole heartedly recommend Dr. Browne and Aspire Fertility; I would not be a mother with two beautiful boys (and possibly more on the way) without her expertise and I could not be more grateful to her.

Don't be afraid to be open about your beliefs and how they may effect your treatment plan. It is so important that you feel comfortable with your plan and your doctor.

My 1st transfer was a fresh embryo transfer with Follistim and Progesterone injections. It resulted in a healthy pregnancy. My 2nd transfer was a frozen transfer, I do not recall the medications used. It did not result in pregnancy. My 3rd transfer was a frozen embryo transfer with Follistim and Progesterone injections. It resulted in a healthy pregnancy.

During my first 3 transfers, I had insurance coverage for fertility treatment. I just paid co-pays and the cost of freezing sperm samples, etc. In my current cycle, I'm paying about $4190 out of pocket for a frozen transfer with all monitoring included.

My doctor supports 1 embryo being transferred at a time in my specific case due to my having had 2 healthy pregnancies and no female reproductive concerns.

Dr. Failor is a great doctor. She is empathetic and informative and relays information very well. She is easy to contact and talk to and explains each step of the procedures and plans very well. The only negative is that the clinic is often busy so some of my appointments were very quick.

ASK QUESTIONS!

With my GYN I tried clomid, and when I came to Dr. Failor she had stated after testing that IVF seemed to be my highest percentage of conceiving. First we had to have surgery for uterine polyps, then we began IVF. My dosage was low as she thought we would be successful on a low dose (due to being 26 with no sign of anovulation or dimished ovarian reserve). For my egg retrieval I was on Gonal F, Menopur, and ganirelix. We retrieved 26 eggs, 19 fertilized, and 10 made it to day 5 blastocyst. We were about to start prepping for my FET however due to coronavirus this has been postponed.

$15,000

I feel she spoke to us with care but once we started asking the hard questions she would go around give an upfront answer. I want to know what the risks are completely upfront instead of being misleading. She is very sweet and very intelligent. I think she is afraid of destroying our dreams by giving us hope that might not be there.

Ask her the hard questions and ask for the hard straight up answers in return.

We are actually in the beginning stages where we are about to make a payment. Due to the payment being over 16,000 without meds, and my insurance not covering anything we have to wait a little longer. But we are suppose to do an egg retrieval, sperm donor and then a gestational carrier

$80 for our co pay every time we needed to see her. Then they quoted us over $16,000 for a basic IVF cycle with no meds and no sperm. We do not qualify for insurance benefits.

She’s is recommending we only transfer one but is okay with transferring multiple embryos. We are good with her suggestions

She was such a delight to be around she always had a smile on her face when she would come into the room. She expressed disappointment in negative results with me. I always feel like she is on me side cheering me on. Looking for the best treatment for me.

Let your guard down, and trust the process. It takes time to find the right treatment plan for each patient.

I had used clomid with my obgyn and it resulted me becoming pregnant. I went back after having my daughter and did clomid for 5 more cycles each time I'd ovulate but success of pregnancy. I moved on to RMA and was put on femara for my cycle ovidrel to trigger a couple of nights or night before my husband and I'd go in for our iuis. Eventually we kept that same protocol and added in gonal f in. It was femara gonal f then ovidrel go in for iuis. Each time I'd make about 2 to 3 follicles. Once I had 4.

I really do not know what the actual cost were because my insurance covered my iuis and if I had not meet my deductible I could use my insurance card.

When we talked about ivf I was told I would be given a single embryo transfer because twins would be considered high risk and the only way theyd do multiple ones would be if they were growing slower than they were suppose to at day 3 or 5 transfer.

Dr. Browne was honest and open with me about the process and the chance for success. The only thing I wish was different is I didn't always see her for my checkups during the STIM process and she wasn't the one that did my retrieval.

Be very honest about your fears and if you have any known risk factors (i.e. overweight, smoking, etc.).

I did IVF premium with PGS testing. I chose to have PGS testing because I wanted to make sure we transferred an embryo without any of the tested genetic defects. At the time, there was no known egg quality problems so we were more concerned with quantity. It included daily nightly STIM injections with Follistim 150u and Menopur 150u for 7 days. I added Ganiralex the last 3 days in the morning. Then I did the Pregnyl trigger shot. I had a positive beta test and was scheduled for egg retrieval the next day. This yielded 13 eggs, 12 were mature, 6 fertilized. On day 1 and 3 I still had 6 embryos. By day 5 I only had 1 embryo to send for genetic testing. The results came back a week later and it was not viable for transfer. The embryo was mosaic for Turner's syndrome.

IVF premium using Capex MD was $22,085.19. I had to finance it through lending club.

Dr. Browne said that if we did PGS testing we could only do single embryo transfer. We didn't when make it to that though.

I was referred to Dr. Browne by a friend and I'm so thankful I for that. It was the first step in the process that led me to where I'm at today. She took the time to walk me through all of my available options. She was kind, didn't try to rush me, and answered all of my questions. She has a great bedside manner and was encouraging when needed. My reasons for switching doctors didn't have anything to do with Dr.Browne personally.

Call right now and make an appointment, you may have to wait a couple weeks to get seen!

My insurance covered 6 IUIs (lifetime), so given IVF isn't covered and I wasn't ready that was the route we chose. She thought there was a chance I had endometriosis, but didn't think it was necessary to address at the time. My husband had slight motility issues, but again nothing dramatic that needed to be addressed. We could have done timed intercourse with Clomid but chose to go straight to IUIs given we'd already had one miscarriage and we weren't getting any younger! IUI #1: 50mg Clomid for 5 days, trigger shot, insemination at 36 hours post trigger. Failed cycle confirmed via blood test. IUI #2: 50mg Clomid for 5 days, trigger shot, insemination at 36 hours post trigger. Failed cycle confirmed via blood test. IUI #3: 5mg Femara for 5 days, trigger shot, insemination at 36 hours post trigger. Failed cycle confirmed after negative HPT and period starting. IUI #4: 5mg Femara for 6 days, 2 Menopur injections, trigger shot, endometrial scratch, insemination at 24 hours post trigger. Failed cycle confirmed after negative HPT and period starting.

My insurance covered most of the IUIs, but had it not I think it would've been around $1200-$1500 per cycle.

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Dr. Balthazar is friendly and kind. You can tell that she really does want to help you grow your family. She does give you all the options and she is honest with you about your chances with each of them. She is smart and experienced, so she’s seen a lot of cases and knows what to do with each of them. She is compassionate as well. When I had my third loss she let my husband and I sit in her office and cry and ask all the questions we had. She never rushed us out or said she needed to go. She just listened and answered. She just makes you feel like you’ve got the champ in your corner that you need in a time like this.

To ask anything you want to know. Don’t walk away wishing you had asked one more thing. And know that she will be honest with her answers.

When we came to Dr. Balthazar we had recently had our second miscarriage with no live births. After testing she found I had MTHFR gene mutation, and a high egg count. She addresses the MTHFR with a prescribed prenatal with folate and a baby aspirin a day. She choose a timed intercourse cycle with Clomid (25mg the first round and 50mg the second) with an Ovidrel trigger shot each time. She said because of my high egg count the signal from my brain to my eggs may be causing my eggs to go too soon or too late causing them to not be timed correctly and thus the miscarriages. With Clomid we could help one to mature at the correct pace and the trigger shot would tell that egg exactly when to go and that would help address that issue. The first month with this cycle we received a negative pregnancy test. The second cycle we received a positive pregnancy test but my HCG didn’t rise as needed and we lost the pregnancy.

I completed all of my fertility testing at this office, which estimated $2000 out of pocket. I also completed two timed intercourse cycles which totaled about $1300 with medications. I have IVF with PGS & an FET scheduled for this summer which will be approximately $26,000 total, with no insurance coverage.

I really liked Dr. Brown. She has a great bedside manner, explained my options, and her recommendations. She spent plenty of time explaining what the next steps in my fertility journey we're. She also understood my financial concerns and concerns that my husband had as well.

I really do not have any advice for any new patients, except that the procedures can be kinda pricey, so do your research for financial resources, but Dr. Brown, and the clinic are amazing!

I remember that the clinic does not use injectables. She recommended at least 2 more rounds of IUI with an increased dosage of clomid, from 50mg to 100mg. I only produced 1 follicle, and the IUI was not successful for me, but it was a good try, and much more affordable than going straight to ivf for us.

A cycle of IUI including ultrasounds and labwork was 1300.00, not including meds. Clomid is very inexpensive though. The ivf procedure was I think around 8-10,000, not including meds, which can range from 2,000-4,000.

Aimee Brown is patient and understanding. She is knowledgeable and professional. I have a uterine anomaly and she was professional in discovering this while also being realistic about how that has been affecting our chances. She had a clear plan moving forward.

Be patient with the process. She is worth the time.

She was considering doing surgery to fix my uterus shape but my particular shape cannot be fixed with surgery. We did our entire work up with her and because we felt restricted (by insurance ) on time, we transferred to a different clinic that would do fresh transfers; RMA only does frozen.

I don’t remember. I’m sorry.

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Dr. Brown has excellent bedside manner. Really jumps in, and gets to figuring out what’s going on. I thought my first appointment was just a consult, but she did an exam, and much more. I felt at ease with Dr brown. She has lots of accolades around the office of articles she has published and magazines that have write ups about her. Her office is warm and welcoming, dimmed lighting, soft music. It’s a comforting place to be when dealing with infertility. Which already takes such a toll on you emotionally.

Maybe to do research on the price of things... everything at the clinic is great. They explain things very thoroughly and I would give you the advice to go see Dr Brown!

Aimee Brown was very personable and explained everything very clearly but again I felt like a number instead of an individual. I felt like I wasn’t looked at as an individual patient rather someone who should do IVF because of my age.

Be more assertive, I wasn’t very because this was all new to me. I should have been more clear as to what I wanted and that was a more natural way of conceiving instead of jumping to IVF. I should have asked for more blood tests etc.

The strategy was to do an IUI a couple of times with clomid than a trigger shot for insemination.

Everything was paid by me my insurance didn’t cover anything. The IUI was about $1000 and the shot was $100.

I couldn't have asked for a better doctor. She made us feel so comfortable with our entire journey of infertility. She explained everything in detail to my husband and I, and took time answering all questions and concerns we had.

The process is never easy but Dr. Brown will do everything in her power to put your mind at ease.

Clomid was out first step. We did for 6 months, after that we entered IUI. We are now to IVF.

I don't remember exact costs. Clomid went thru my insurance. IUI was under 1000 per round.

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Warm, friendly, smart and attuned to the patients needs. Easy to talk to and ask questions. Very optimistic but truthful when it comes to describing chances for success. Sometimes I wish she would be a little more prepared before she saw me instead of let me look at your chart. But this happened very rarely.

Be patient, things don't happened when you want them too.

I don't remember the protocols. I have only done IUIs with this doctor.

I have insurance coverage for IUI. Co pay cost were about 200 dollars

Did not do ivf.

Dr. Brown performed HSG and IUI on me. She is an amazing doctor who always cares so much about her patients. I would definitely recommend Dr. Brown to anyone who needs fertility treatments.

You are in good hands. Trust Dr. Brown and her treatment plan.

I had HSG in September 2016 performed by Dr. Brown. The result showed that my tubes were clear. We had our first IUI in November 2016. I was on 5mg of letrozole from CD3-CD7. I had my initial ultrasound on CD 3, and a second ultrasound on CD 11. The second ultrasound showed that I had a follicle on my left side with 17mm in diameter. I was told to do the trigger shot on CD 12 at 9pm, and had the IUI on CD 14 at 9am. We also followed the RE's instruction to have intercourse again on the same day CD 14 at night. I started the progesterone suppositories twice a day since DPO 3. I found out I was pregnant on DPO 12. I just gave birth to a healthy baby boy last week, and I am so grateful to have this baby.

My insurance covers up to 6 IUI.

She is open, knowledgeable and explains things well. She is compassionate of the situation and concerns and doesn't push you toward something you aren't comfortable with. She makes sure all questions are answered or directs you to where you can find the answers.

Write down any questions you think of so you can get all the information to make an informed decision.

Initial costs were primarily covered by insurance. We have not moved forward with other procedures yet partially due to cost. But the cost seems to be pretty standard.

She very personable and friendly. When she is giving results she gives them in a way where you understand them and if you have questions you are not afraid to ask. She has great bedside manner and even when I had a surgery she was great at explaining why was gonna happen and showed my husband what they did how it looked afterwards.

We had a hysterecopy before we started anything. 1st cycle of iui we did .75 first but I had no growth In follicles so they increased 1.75 of letrozole with a hcg trigger shot 2nd cycle of iui we did 2.5 with hcg trigger shot

It costs about 1300 for an IUI

Dr Browne performed all the testing necessary to try to find the cause of our RPL. During my last miscarriage, she searched and searched for a heartbeat. Her compassion shows in every visit and you can tell she really wants you to succeed.

Trust her advice

Femera plus trigger shot for iui. 1 cycle bfn RPL: progesterone, prednisone, baby aspirin, prenatal vitamin, weekly ultrasounds. 1 cycle, miscarriage

Iui about $1100 per cycle Costs seem on par with other clinics. Labs and some other procedures were covered u see insurance.

Na

Dr. B is upbeat, kind and positive. She remembers the important things and is extremely knowledgeable about current research. She always explained next steps for all potential outcomes so we knew what to expect either way. She let me express fear and joy and all the in-betweens. She would explain things in a way we understood and answer any questions we had. She always made time for us.

Don’t be afraid to ask questions or the “why” behind protocol decisions.

Before beginning she reviewed our SHG, hysteroscopy, and ran labs. Our first IVF cycle we followed a typical protocol as well as a “transfer fresh, test the rest” plan. Our fresh transfer was unsuccessful and we had no euploids (PGT normal) but some mosaics. She changed our protocol to a duo-stim with menopur and retrieved from a different time in my cycle. We had better results the second retrieval. We also did an ERA and three months of lupron to suppress potential endo. In the third month of lupron depot we repeated the hysteroscopy and removed two small polyps. The transfer after all of that was successful. I think lupron made a big difference.

aspire always accommodated our need for an early appointment time. The wait was never more than 20 minutes for monitoring. We saw our doctor at every appointment, which was important to us after coming from a clinic that we only saw random doctors during procedures. Appointments were never rushed and I always had a chance to ask questions. When needed, we would move to a meeting room to go over meds, protocol calendars, etc. and ask any remaining questions with the nurse well. Our team was committed and we would see the same people every time.

I believe one round of IVF with PGT-A for all embryos was about $16,000 not including meds. We did get a teacher discount and a discount for an affiliation with Carrot. Embryo transfers were about $1,700 and would get cheaper with further transfers.

We were encouraged to transfer one embryo at a time. We agreed with this due to risk factors.

Dr. Balthazar is so so so friendly. She’s very encouraging. I’m a plus size person and she never brought up my weight/bmi during the consult (which I was nervous for). She has a way of making your fears drift away. Dr. Balthazar talks you through each test and exam so there are no surprises and is eager to listen and out to rest any concerns I might have. My favorite thing about her so far is that she explains what she sees in a manner you will understand.

You don’t need to worry. Feel free to drop the stress at the door! Also make sure to ask questions. Dr. Balthazar listens very well and will gladly answer any question.

I’m still in the beginning stages of our journey at Aspire! I’ve only gone in a couple times now, but Dr. Balthazar seems to have a good plan that my husband and I feel comfortable with! So far we’ve had labs, genetic screening, semen analysis, and an HSG (hysterosalpingogram) done. She wants to rule out any other reasons we’re having issues. They all came out clear and good, except that I have PCOS which we all knew beforehand. She just had extra confirmation!

So far I haven’t had to pay out of pocket for anything. My PPO covers all testing for now. I only pay my copay with each visit. I haven’t undergone any treatment yet so I can’t say anymore.

We have not had to discuss anything having to do with IVF just yet.

Dr. B is friendly cheerful and knowledgeable. She will listen to your concerns and address them. She seems confident and competent. The only thing I would say is that she seems so cheerful and positive that I don’t know if she is giving me false hope! Ha! That is yet to be determined. I’d rather someone be blunt and honest with me than give me false hope. But that’s a personal choice.

Ask her ALL the questions that come up. Write them down and bring to the office. She will answer them all and not rush you through them and never make you feel like any of the questions are stupid. She is fantadtic

We are in the midst of my first IVF cycle right now. I am on suppression currently.

The IVF cycle is very expensive. But that’s true everywhere.

For my case, she prefers single embryo transfer

Dr. Balthazar was always chipper and easy to connect with. Referred to us by name and encouraged and explained every step. She was always gentle and would talk you through each procedure or ultrasound so you were comfortable and aware. I never felt any pain with pelvic exams and felt safe in the environment she created.

She talks fast but is always willing to answer questions so don’t be afraid to just ask and she will spend as much time as needed to make sure you understand every

With our course of treatment everything was by the book for frozen embryo transfer I started with birth control then went to estrogen orally after an increase in this I started progesterone shots right before transfer and increased from 1 ml to 2 ml since my levels were low. When this was causing too much pain she switched me to 1 ml and a vaginal progesterone that helped with injection pain.

RIVF 25,000 FET 4,000

I trust her implicitly and value her expertise on how many embryos to implant

Dr. Balthazar was extremely competent in her practice. She was able to explain procedures and decisions to us in a way that we could understand. If things went differently than expected, we adjusted course and the rationale was always explained to us in a way that we understood. She also had a very positive energy but blended it perfectly with complete honesty. We had a couple miscarriages in our first cycle, and she was extremely compassionate with us while still being honest with us. Nothing felt sugar coated or watered down, but there was so much compassion and understanding. She was also always sincerely hopeful and engaged in our care. You didn’t feel like she was rushing in or out. Dr. Balthazar took the time with us to make sure we understood and were comfortable with our plan of care. She was truly one of the few reasons we were emotionally able to continue through our treatment until we were able to become pregnant.

The cost of our cycle was always explained to us in detail. We met with someone specifically about the cost and financing. She always answered all of our questions in detail and followed up with us if any questions or concerns came up.

I had gone to a different clinic previously and had a lengthy medical record. On my first appointment with Dr B she let me know she read all 100+ pages and was determined to get a positive outcome. She was always companionate, calming and caring. She answered all my questions and tried to ease my worries. She let me know she has a plan and we will continually adjust it so we can have a successful pregnancy. From the very first visit she made me feel comfortable and confident in her abilities.

Be open , honest and listen to what she has to say. She knows what she is doing and wants a happy outcome for every patient.

The first round of retrieval I was put on gonal f Lupolide Lupron Omintrope The second round we did not use omintrope Her goal was to get the best quality eggs without putting a huge amount of debt on top of the already stressful procedures.

After insurance I paid about $6000 out of pocket for the first round. Then an additional 1500 for the second round. I want to do a third round but need help financially

I loved Dr Failor. She was very gentle, never judgemental and always took the time to answer my questions when I didn’t exactly understand. She never tried to push me into any treatment when I wasn’t ready to start.

I would tell them to be themselves and ask questions about anything you don’t understand.

I did one cycle of invocell with dr Failor. I cannot remember the prescription names used but it was a low dose cycle. We used clomid, and stimmed for 9 days, I think. 8 eggs retrieved and inserted into invocell device. At removal we had 2 healthy embryos that we fresh transferred. And one embryo that didn’t grow past day 4. My transfer resulted in a positive pregnancy test, both embryos implanted but only one progressed. Had a healthy baby boy exactly 8 months to the date after transfer. Delivered early due to preeclampsia.

I paid 8k for one cycle of invocell not including some testing before cycle began, and pregnancy ultrasounds

I do wish we had discussed this topic more in depth. I did not want a multiple pregnancy but it was only discussed on the day of transfer how many we would want to transfer. I would have liked to have been told more in detail about the dangers of multiple embryo transfer before having to make that decision in somewhat of a hurry.

Dr. B is very energetic and has such a positive energy with her patients. That positive energy was appreciated at our consultation and getting started with our IVF cycle. We only saw her at one or two monitoring appointments and for transfer. It would have meant more as a patient to be able to see your assigned physician with each appointment a doctor is involved, not the other doctors in the practice. She has a protocol that has worked for many patients, and we had decent success with it retrieval wise with my diminished ovarian reserve, however have had no success in transfer of either of the 2 embryos from that retrieval cycle. She feels strongly about fresh transfers and recommended that, rather than perform an ERA biopsy prior to doing a frozen transfer. We have later found that an ERA showed a shift window of receptivity and additional progesterone needed with a new RE. Overall, Dr. B is a wonderful person and doctor with a great attitude. I would hope she would be more open to including her patient's requests in their treatment especially those who have already had unsuccessful treatment elsewhere. To someone who is just starting out, Dr. B is a wonderful place to begin treatment. For any cases that need further personalization, I would recommend seeking treatment elsewhere.

Be prepared to see multiple physicians during the course of your treatment. We loved getting to see Dr. B, but only saw her a few times during our IVF cycle. You end up meeting all of the physicians at the practice through this process, however, I feel this makes the experience less individualized and less personal with your doctor. Something that is key in my opinion during infertility treatment. Dr. B has a warm energetic personality-she was encouraging and always positive.

Dr. B has a specific protocol she uses for many of her patients-one she developed and has had success with. It's a lower dosage of medications with estrogen priming before, and including letrozole and HGH. We were open to trying this protocol with my diminished ovarian reserve, and had decent success retrieval wise with 2 blasts out of 5 mature eggs retrieved and 3 fertilized. We did not PGS test, and unfortunately both embryos resulted in a failed transfer (2 separate transfers)

They had packages for IVF cycles depending on what all you wanted (PGS testing or not, frozen transfer, etc)

The lab here has very high standards for transferring embryos and freezing them. We had an early blast on day 5 that they would not allow us to transfer, and did not continue growing on day 6, so was discarded. This clinic is pretty adamant on elective single embryo transfers.