David Barad

I give Dr. Barad my highest possible recommendation. He is kind, compassionate, supportive and comforting -- I wish all of my doctors could have his bedside manner. He spent a long time getting to know us (me and my spouse) in our initial consultation and I knew within 5 minutes that I definitely wanted to work with Dr. Barad (we had previously interviewed a few other top REs in NYC that I wasn't thrilled about after those initial consults). At each of my monitoring appointments, Dr. Barad spent a long time with me and thoughtfully answered all of my many questions and calmed my anxieties. Dr. Barad performed my egg retrieval and my transfer, which was a success. We are so grateful to Dr. Barad for everything!!!

Don't be shy about asking questions or raising any concerns -- Dr. Barad will be happy to discuss everything with you in great detail.

It's been a little over a year since my treatment, so I apologize that I don't remember all of the specifics. I do remember that I used Gonal F (hard to forget that drug, since it was so much more expensive than the others!). I also remember that I did not use Menopur.

It was efficient and well-run. I tended to get there at the early end of the time window because I wanted to be as quick in and out as possible before work, and it always worked out smoothly for me!

I have Aetna insurance (which is accepted by CHR), and under the fertility coverage of my insurance plan there was one part of the process that wasn't covered and I think the cost was ~$2,500.

CHR is one of the only centers in NYC (that I'm aware of after extensive research!) that is not militantly pro-eSET for all patients. CHR has published papers supporting patient autonomy on this issue, which I was aware of before selecting CHR and I really appreciate. Before my transfer, I expressed my very strong preference to transfer two embryos, and we had a long, thoughtful discussion about it (I was already very well informed on the issue but Dr. Barad also was very thoughtful about fully discussing it with me to make sure I was fully informed about the risks, etc.). We proceeded with a fresh (non-frozen) transfer of two blasts (day 5), which resulted in a healthy singleton pregnancy.

I have no complaints about working with nor the service I've received from Dr. Barad. Is more attentive and intelligent with me and my situation then my previous doctor so I appreciate that. It would be great if we were local to each other however I do not feel like I have missed out on any service being remote.

I suggest that any patients going through this journey to be prepared for be prepared for any consultation with questions but then also be prepared for the honest truth that is inherent in the answers.

The overall strategy was based on my desires of still trying to conceive with my own eggs and then utilizing donor eggs if needed. I appreciate that he allowed me to do that, as I am aware that some doctors would not given my age. Protocols included several injectables and pills to stimulate my ovaries and egg production as well as it has medications to prepare my lining for transfer; and then after transfer, medications to help maintain the pregnancy.

Definitely not a cattle call. Very organized with an awareness of time on the patient's behalf.

The clinic's pricing icing is significantly better than what I have found elsewhere as a fair comparison. They even offer discounts for certain income levels which is certainly appreciated.

I was offered the opportunity to transfer more than one embryo, however, I did opt to transfer only one given that I only had two. I wanted another opportunity to transfer that one alone if the first was not successful.

My concern with Dr. Barad and the clinic is that you cannot call him. You can email him and the nurse but he may or may not reply and if he does reply, it's not in a timely manner. In addition, the clinic has an unusual set up and it is partially due to the lack of doctors and the size of the clinic. After they do the ultrasound, you won't have a chance to talk with the doctor because then he's off to the next patient waiting on the next room and for the rest of the morning, the doctors are busy doing these rounds and then the surgeries right after. By the time they're done, the clinic would have been closed already for the day and you could only hope that he replies to your email after that. In another IVF clinic where I did the same treatment, I got to talk to the doctor after each ultrasound in the privacy of her room and I could call her on the phone and speak with her.

Communication is key and patients should be able to talk to the doctor after the ultrasound and also be able to call him. The clinic should change their policy on this.

The doctors are against antagonist treatment. There is human growth hormone and estrogen priming weeks prior. You will be taking 150 of Gonal F and 225 of Menopur for about 8 days. You will also be asked to take prednisone. What I did not like was the continued use of HGH up until the two-week wait and the staff who emailed me after I told her that it was a negative pregnancy test, asked me to continue with the HGH! Crazy. I told her that the HGH use was excessive and that I'm not sure the doctor was even aware of this. If he is, then I'm totally disappointed. I never talked of doing another treatment and even if I wanted to, shouldn't the doctor discuss the protocol first after the failed IVF, shouldn't there be a rest especially since there are risks involved with HGH use.

It's a very small clinic. There is little wait time. After women go to the lab, they are brought to the ultrasound rooms and the doctors would go from one to the next. The problem with this is that you don't have the chance to talk and discuss with the doctor afterwards because he is on to the next patient. There is little privacy because of the clinic setup. I talked to the nurse coordinator while standing in a printer room beside the hallway, where everyone could hear what we would talk about. In addition, although your doctor may be Dr. Barad, you will only see him on days he's there. Again, this is because they're understaffed. So he is there TTHS and the other doctor is there MWF. If your retrieval or transfer falls on a weekend, it will be another doctor.

The Assisted Hatching was overpriced at $2K compared to $600+ in other clinics.

It was fresh transfer, day 3 of all embryos that developed or total of 3.

I think Dr. Barad is patient in explaining things but I wonder if the protocols they provide are specifically catered to the individual because the list of meds have already been prepared even before I came in for my bloodwork on day 3.

Again, this feedback is about CHR and not one specific doctor there. I noticed that unlike in other IVF clinics, where patients get to sit down and talk with their doctor in the privacy of the doctor's clinic after an ultrasound, at CHR, patients when they come in for monitoring, undergo ultrasound but are not provided time or privacy to discuss and conduct consultation afterwards. The doctor for the day performs ultrasound on one patient right after another, as they move from one room to the next and there is no opportunity to talk. They are in a hurry to move to the next. Bear in mind mornings are very busy because that's when all monitoring happen and unfortunately, there's only one doctor. Afterwards, the doctors go to the surgery room and then they're off for the afternoon. You cannot even contact them on the phone. They won't connect you. You can only email the doctors, CC the nurse but unlike phone calls, you may or may not receive an email and it may not be in a timely manner. The assistant doctor does call in the afternoon but most likely, he's not the primary doctor you had consultation with (Dr. Gleicher or Dr. Barad). You may only see Dr. Barad twice because of the way they schedule their doctors MWF, TTH and the doctor that will perform your retrieval or transfer if it falls on a weekend is another doctor. In addition, the nurses provide you a list of meds and I'm not sure the doctors even look at them. For instance, even after the two week wait, I was asked to continue to taking Human Growth Hormone and it was shocking because some clinics do not even prescribe this due to potential risks, and if they do, it's typically during priming (or before start of ovarian stimulation) and during stimulation, but in the case of CHR, they asked you to continue until after retrieval, transfer, two-week wait and shockingly, even after a failed IVF even if there is no talk of another treatment. Clearly even if the patient is interested in undergoing another treatment, the patient should first discuss medications and approach/protocol with the doctor.

They are aggressive when it comes to prescribing meds. They were against the antagonist protocol but prescribed HGH, estrogen priming.

There's privacy because it's a small clinic. When you come in in the morning, you're sent to the room for ultrasound or lab for bloodwork, as are the other patients, so you hardly end up waiting in a room. This is finished within an hour. There's no long line.

The IVF fee is $20K including the overpriced assisted hatching ($2K compared to $600+ in other clinics) and ICSI.

For women with DOR or AMA, they are probably the only clinic that would perform fresh transfer with two or more embryos. Most clinics would do PGS and only transfer blastocysts. So if your argument is that the mother's womb is the best place to grow an embryo as opposed to a lab, then this is one of the few clinics for you. The other being IRMS. Their rate for Assisted Hatching is overpriced. It's typically at $600+ and they charge $2K.

Dr. Barad gave me hope, he was kind throughout the whole process, always answered all of my questions and never made me feel rushed or pressured. I trust him with my life. He is not only the best doctor I’ve ever had, but a great person who I feel genuinely cares for my wellbeing. He is not judge mental and only wants the best. I felt as if he was almost a fatherly figure in his approach.

See him in person, take things day by day.

I first started advocating as I always had for children with my own eggs. I did the clinical trial with prp at chr in which follicles developed, but they were very small so I was put on injections of menopur. I also tried chlomid with the menopur and the follicles never grew to appropriate sizes. I can currently on estrace 2 mg with taking progesterone on day 19 to finish the 28 day cycles in my future. I am now exploring donor egg ivf with my husband and Dr Barad on my side.

Free clinical trial. $1000 lab fee/ about $500 anesthesia for prp... free monitoring, a first consultation fee but I had already met my out of pocket and deductible from prior clinics... close to $200 every round of DHEA and coq10 pills and menopur was never covered... $2,000 about weekly while in preparation for iui cycles that failed. I understand donor egg ivf to be about $25,000 inclusive.

Dr Barad said single embryo transfers would be safest for me if I pursue donor egg ivf. I trust him. I am small with poi, my fsh is very high and my estrogen is negative 0.0000. I need the hrt to regulate my health and I trust that Dr Barad knows best with what will be safest for me in a pregnancy.

Dr Barad is a highly knowledgeable and compassionate doctor. He may at times focus to little on research that contradicts his own, however he is open to trying new things. I would highly recommend Dr Barad to anyone who has DOR or is of advanced maternal age.

Trust him and expect to be there a long time during consults because he talks slow and explains everything. He also may give you a hug or rub your hand of something to comfort you. Some people may be taken aback by this at first but it is purely out of human comfort.

Dr. Barad believes in high dose stims and to retrieve eggs early, depending on when estrogen plateaus even if the follicle are small. The eggs are matured in the lab. I have 100% fertilization rate with this clinic. He does not believe in using antagonists (Ganerlix or Cetrotide) as he believes it causes damage to egg quality. He does an immune protocol for transfer. Firmly believes in fresh 3 day transfers and is opposed to PGS testing

Usually limited wait time. If you go early then you will wait because doctor does not come in until 8:30

Very expensive OOP. About 18K per cycle. They take 2 insurances (aetna and oxford)

He will do what makes sense and take into account what the patient wants. If you are older or have a history of failed transfers he will transfer 3+

Dr. Barad was confident that, despite my pretty extreme Diminished Ovarian Reserve (worst FSH was 25.5 and worst AMH was 0.5) that I could get pregnant because of my relatively young age (30 at the time of egg retrieval). And even though only two mature eggs were collected, both fertilized and I had a day 3 transfer of both embryos and had a healthy singleton pregnancy. Basically, CHR is best in class when it comes to treating patients with DOR. It's their bread and butter. They have their way of doing things (DHEA and CoQ10 supplementation, early retrieval, day 2/3 transfers, no PGS testing, high stims, etc.) but it's because it works well. They are obsessed with achieving pregnancy in difficult populations (DOR, advanced material age). I appreciated their obsessiveness. It meant they were doing every evidence-based thing they could do get me pregnant. And they did, and it worked. This was after our first clinic cancelled our first round of IVF for poor response and told me to use donor eggs. Young women with DOR--please don't believe doctors when they say this. Age is still the #1 predictor of pregnancy changes. Many clinics just don't have the expertise to treat DOR patients. Find a clinic like CHR that does.

Write down all of your questions in advance of your consultation(s). Don't be afraid to ask anything at all. There are no stupid questions. Ask questions, but trust the process. He knows what he's doing.

I was on 8 weeks of DHEA & CoQ10 supplementation. Then estrogen patches for about a week, then baseline ultrasound and the start of a microdose lupron flare protocol with high stims. Lupron 2x per day to suppress ovulation, then Menopor (150) and Gonal F (300 I think) each day. I stimmed for 12 days then egg retrieval and day 3 transfer. After retrieval I started antibiotics for a few days, Lovenox, and prednisone. Also baby aspirin. I'm about to start trying for baby #2, and they've changed their protocols a bit. They are now moving to earlier egg retrieval, so you don't need to do the antagonist (Lupron in my case).

I don't remember exactly, but I think with the cost of drugs (~$5,000) our cycle ran us $20,000. We did ICSI but not assisted hatching. We also had to travel to NYC and stay in a hotel so that was an extra cost.

They want you to get pregnant but they don't want you to have triplets. In my case, at age 30, I transferred 2 day 3 embryos, which was reasonable. I had a singleton pregnancy. They wouldn't have let me transfer more than 2 (if I had more than that) and I wouldn't have wanted to. If you are older or have multiple failed transfers, they will let you transfer more.

Dr. Barad is wonderful. He is a little old fashioned, in that he only does fresh transfers, which is the only reason why we went to another clinic. He treats you like a person, not just a number. He always took the time with both me and my husband to answer any questions. The only bad thing is that he tells you to email him and then doesn't return those emails. Other than that, he's great.

Protocol used for all cycles was the same: 75mg DHEA 1000 mg CoQ10 Synthroid Plaquinal 450 IU Gonal F 150 IU Menopur Estrogen Patches I think they do basically the same protocol for everyone.

You went up the waiting room, and there never seemed to be more than 4 people waiting. There was only once that there was more, and I had to awkwardly stand in the hall. It's a small, narrow building.

Every cycle was roughly $15,000 including medication.

They do multiple embryo transfers.

I am an older patient in terms of fertility treatment, which is difficult in and of itself. Dr. Barad and CHR do present themselves as specializing in older women, which of course helped me feel somewhat better and, as a long-distance patient, this was the primary reason I chose CHR. Dr. Barad was noticeably kinder and more reassuring in his manner (despite the abysmal statistics we have faced and still face in this process). He was communicative and receptive to questions or concerns. However, CHR as a whole, including all 3 of its physicians to varying degrees, could do a far better job with patient communication. For example, for our first IVF cycle, we were not told that we would be automatically required to do ICSI and assisted zona hatching. We arrived on the day of scheduled egg retrieval and at this point were asked by front desk staff to pay an additional ~$3500, which seemed very unprofessional. Also, my partner and I currently live outside the U.S., and particularly prior to our first IVF cycle, at times it was very difficult to get clear, prompt and complete answers to our questions from nurses ("Clinical Coordinators") and staff. This greatly hindered our efforts to complete the requested immunological testing for CHR prior to the first IVF cycle. It took an inordinate amount of phone calls, clarifications and excess time to clear up what could have been resolved in a couple hours with clearer and timelier answers and better communication.

Ask all the questions you have; be very clear about what information you need and have questions prepared ahead of time. You get very little designated face-to-face time with physicians at CHR during a cycle. If you're struggling emotionally and if you're able to, let him know that this process is hard for you.

Initial ultrasound around cycle day 2, then Follistim (or Bravelle or Gonal-F) 450 IU QAM for about 9 days, along with Menopur 150 IU QPM for about 9 days. Daily ultrasounds starting about day 5 of hormonal stimulation process. HCG trigger shot timed so that follicles were not too mature. Egg retrieval 36 hrs. later, about cycle day 13. Important - NOTE: Embryo transfer for me was always on DAY TWO. So all embryos were only 2-day embryos. This is something CHR does often with older women. Also, we were explicitly advised AGAINST pre-implantion genetic diagnosis. Dr. Gleicher (as "lead" CHR physician) felt that PGD offered more risk than benefit for my embryos as an older patient. (This was of course in direct contrast to what other clinics had told us, but I was ok with it.) I had some evidence of an unidentified immune issue, so in addition to hormonal medications, here were the medications prescribed: DHEA 75mg daily before and throughout all cycles (I took less), CoQ10 1000mg daily (I took ubiquinol instead as I believe it's better absorbed), low-dose aspirin, prednisone ranging from 10mg and 60mg at different times during IVF cycle, doxycycline around time of egg retrieval, Lovenox (enoxaparin) 40 mg following egg retrieval, and daily progesterone in oil injections until pregnancy test (or 12 weeks gestation). Prior to IVF treatment, with my second (natural) miscarriage, I learned my thyroid was underactive, so I now take natural dessicated thyroid (a medication called "WP Thyroid"). Dr. Gleicher told me, as I understood it, that he sees any unexplained hypothyroid issue as an autoimmune issue. My initial immunological testing also found that I had an extremely high interleukin-6 level, which is indicative of inflammation, but not useful information in terms of any specific clinical cause or source. I also was prescribed an IV infusion of Immunoglobulin-G (very expensive) before egg retrieval due to likely autoimmune issue, as well as because Dr. Gleicher believed my partner and I had some HLA type I and II matching. (Apparently, Dr. Braverman of Braverman Reproductive Immunology, who we consulted with briefly, disagreed with this assessment.) Before my second IVF attempt I was directed to start Plaquenil (hydroxychloroquine) 400 mg daily to (hopefully) prevent miscarriage prevention. CHR prescribed Plaquenil as an attempt to address my high IL-6 level/suspected autoimmune issue as well as recurrent miscarriage. (I have since chosen on my own to discontinue Plaquenil.)

It was not too bad - we did not have a problem with the scheduling. It was however difficult at that time to ask any questions of the doctor, who always seemed quite rushed.

Because I was not working, and because of the current exchange rate, we qualified for the reduced IVF rate of $8500 per cycle. To this was added the following: $4200 per cycle for anesthesia, ICSI, and assisted zona hatching; $4000 per cycle for IVIg; $3500 on average per cycle for hormonal and other medications; $4500 per cycle for travel (from outside the U.S.) and lodging costs; $3700 (one-time) for all initial immunological testing needed before first cycle.

Dr. Barad was compassionate to me. I was of advanced maternal age when I first started exploring IVF (age 46), and I was 47 when I started, and turned 48 in the last cycle when I got pregnant (and miscarried). Other doctors in other clinics/offices mocked me or said insensitive things throughout the process. Dr. Barad also showed deep respect and connection to my Jewish path and how spiritual the IVF journey felt to me. He also told us bad news with care, even giving us metaphors for how not to become invested in the early few weeks of the pregnancy. Although it was hard information to hear, it was helpful to have the clarity.

Ask a lot of questions, and in particular ask the practice (Dr. Gleicher and Dr. Barad) to do everything possible even if experimental in the first cycle. I wish I had fully understood about HGH and taken HGH earlier (I only did it in the 4th cycle, which happens to be when I got pregnant). Also - do everything else emotionally to prepare and ground during the IVF cycles as well as acupuncture right after transfer.

I was advanced age (47) - I took Gonal F (I think 450cc) and Menopur (I think 150cc), micronized DHEA 75mg (beginning 3 months prior to starting cycles, using CHR's brand), CoQ10, early egg retrieval (CHR's specialty research is amazing), 3-weeks of HGH leading up to my 4th/last cycle, and 3 day fresh transfers. First cycle I got 2 eggs (1 embryo); 2nd cycle 3 eggs (2 embryos); 3rd cycle only on follicle looked big so we switched to IUI (I think I was too exhausted and not taking the meds properly so that is why that cycle failed); 4th cycle I got 3 eggs (3 embryos) - resulted in positive pregnancy test, but miscarried at 8 weeks.

Monitoring was also professional. Everything was explained well, I got printouts of the images, there was a screen up above that I could see as well as the one the doctor was looking at. I did not know how often I would need to be monitored as an out of state person, so that was a little challenging at first and at times to figure out. I never had to wait long and it felt luxurious to wait in the waiting room which had an espresso/coffee and hot chocolate machine and often croissants. The office is in the Upper East Side of NYC and I lived 3 hours away. I would come in for appointments sometimes for the day or else stay over at a friend's. Parking was hard, until I discovered a parking garage by NYU a few blocks away.

Unfortunately we paid fully out of pocket for treatment and medications due to my age (my insurance only covered up to age 43 I think) and so it cost us a huge amount (over $60,000 total). I was able to purchase the fertility meds needed for one cycle while in Costa Rica on a short vacation for half the cost there at a pharmacy, and for the last cycle an IVF friend donated her unused meds to me.

CHR/Dr. Gleicher had great explanations for transferring all my fresh embryos since I only produced a few each time and since I was advanced age and didn't want to risk losing any of them through testing or freezing.

Dr. Barad is very nice, compassionate and experienced. No doubt. But I also think since he is older he is stuck with his opinions. I also think that they try to push everything that's only proven by their clinic's research. In my opinion one clinic and 3 women is not of statistical significance. For older women with DOR they try whatever they can to retrieve even if it is one follicle. So they don't cancel cycles. I think it's great for those women. But they tried to use the same protocol for me even though I am 44 and retrieved 8 eggs. it didn't work for me and they want to do the same even the next time.

If you have no hope and only getting 1-2 follicles they will treat you.

1st IVF - 300gonal - 150 Menopur. 2 eggs retrieved, 1 fertilized with ICSI and transferred. BFN. 2nd IVF - I asked to increase Meds. 450 Gonal, 150 Menopur. Trigger at 14mm lead. First time triggered at 17 lead and the other two at 11 and 12. He thought we waited too long and lost the lead so this time at 14. 8 retrieved, 4 fertilized, 3 transferred. Pregnancy - D&C in 9th week. Trisomy 15. He doesn't cancel cycles. He doesn't want to freeze or do PGD. Does day 2 transfer. Said the same protocol for the next one. So I switched RE.

It's always in the morning. I didn't see Dr. Barad even once during me second IVF monitoring. Dr. Kushner who did monitoring is so grim and doesn't give you any answers or indications. Extremely Uninformative.

My insurance covered it.

I could not have been happier with Dr. Barad. My son exists because of his caring nature, as well as because of his expertise.

Make the appointment today!

New York, so most things were covered by insurance--co-pays added up, but was very grateful it was covered! Donor egg cycle was not covered, and I think it ran around $25,000

He is caring. Good relationships with office staff and nurses. Willing to come in on weekends.

Talk it through with him.

Dr. Barad is a skilled, experienced, and honest physician that keeps communication as one of the key elements in their relationship with the patient. Even when things did not go as expected, they made sure to comfort me and maintained a positive attitude without being unrealistic. I will never forget the day Dr. Barad did my embryo transfer and held my hand, I could imagine his smile through his face mask, and his eyes told me “Everything is going to be ok”.

Do not hesitate for a second, get a consultation with Dr. Barad!

I am a poor responder with DOR, the treatment included CoQ10 and DHEA for at least 3 months and then the stimulations were with high doses of Menopur and Follistim. I also did steroids and aspirin as well as Lovenox, estrogen, and progesterone after the transfer.

Around $12,000-$15,000 per cycle without including medications.

Based on my age, and we decided not to test the embryos, the recommendation was to transfer multiple embryos at the same time. I am happy we did.

Dr. Barad is kind, compassionate, and warm. He's also scientific and knowledgable. He took time to explain things to me, address concerns, and alter the program when needed. I felt a sense of calm every time I met with him--whether it was for a check on where I was in my cycle or for an actual transfer.

Listen to him. He's an expert, and the guidance and advice he provides is invaluable.

I don't remember the drugs for the retrieval--Gonal, the trigger shot. That's about it. For the transfers, I used progesterone by mouth and injection as well as estrogen by mouth and injection, and Lovenox as well as baby aspiring. For two cycles, I had an IVIG transfusion to deal with clotting antibodies being very high.

They were efficient. I have a very busy work schedule and I could count on them generally running on time every morning I visited.

I am very fortunate in that they were covered by insurance.

We transferred two embryos three times due to advanced maternal age. On the fourth try, only one of the two thawed.

Dr. Barad is a kind professional who makes you feel like you're family. He listens to your concerns and covers all topics tactfully. I have wanted to visit CHR for many years ever since I became infertile and I feel so blessed that I'm now a patient of Dr. Barad.

My only advice is that he is the best and that, if you want to be cared for, you should see Dr. Barad. He specializes in premature ovarian failure, which is incredibly rare. Him and the other doctor are constantly seeking ways to improve fertility and I am just forever grateful.

Well, so far I have only had to pay consult fees and $1,500 for PRP but that was part of a clinical trial. I have not actually gone through IVF yet.