Contact Information:
Lisa Hourmouzis, RN
919.968.4656 office
252.339.2322 mobile
LisaH@tubal-reversal.net

New tubal reversal specialist joins Chapel Hill center

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 21, 2008

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – Dr. Gary S. Berger, medical director and world-renowned tubal reversal surgeon, welcomes Dr. Charles W. Monteith to the Chapel Hill Tubal Reversal Center surgical team.

Dr. Monteith is the first tubal reversal surgeon to join the practice since the initial tubal reversal microsurgery performed by Dr. Berger in 1982.

Monteith began his fellowship training with the center in January 2008, and has assisted in more than 100 reversal procedures under the guidance of Dr. Berger.

According to Dr. Monteith, his plan is to keep tubal reversal surgery a viable option for women wanting to have children after tubal ligation surgery.

“My interest in becoming a tubal reversal surgeon began when I realized that tubal reversal surgery was gradually becoming less available to patients because of limited training opportunities for younger physicians,” said Monteith.

Dr. Monteith graduated summa cum laude from Xavier University in Louisiana. He attended medical school at the University of California at San Francisco where he received a Howard Hughes Medical Research Fellowship used to conduct research in molecular genetics.

After completing his residency in obstetrics and gynecology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, he accepted a clinical assistant professor position with the department of obstetrics and gynecology in 2001. He also served as assistant professor in obstetrics and gynecology at Wake Medical Hospital in Raleigh for seven years where he practiced high-risk obstetrics and advanced surgical gynecology.

Chapel Hill Tubal Reversal Center is the only facility in the United States dedicated exclusively to tubal reversal surgery. Dr. Gary Berger has successfully performed over 7,000 tubal reversals using the one-hour outpatient microsurgical technique he developed and refined. His technique has been featured on The Learning Channel and Discovery Health.

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Dr. Charles Monteith to Join Staff at Tubal Reversal Center

(Chapel Hill, NC) – Dr. Gary S. Berger, medical director of Chapel Hill Tubal Reversal Center in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, announced today that Dr. Charles Monteith will join the staff at Chapel Hill Tubal Reversal Center effective July 21, 2008.

Dr. Berger has been performing microsurgical tubal anastomosis and tubal implantation at Chapel Hill Tubal Reversal Center since 1982. This is the first time that Dr. Berger has offered fellowship training in tubal reversal surgery.

Under the guidance of Dr. Berger, Dr. Monteith has been undergoing certification in tubal ligation reversal surgery since January 2008, and has assisted in more than 100 reversal procedures.

“My interest in becoming a tubal reversal surgeon began when I realized that tubal reversal surgery was gradually becoming less available to patients because of limited training opportunities for younger physicians,” said Monteith.

His desire to keep tubal reversal surgery as a viable option for women led him to leave a successful practice in obstetrics and gynecology to start a career in tubal ligation reversal.

Dr. Monteith attended college at Xavier University of Louisiana where he graduated summa cum laude. He attended medical school at the University of California at San Francisco where he received a Howard Hughes Medical Research Fellowship and conducted research in molecular genetics. After completing his residency in obstetrics and gynecology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Dr. Monteith accepted a clinical assistant professor position with the department of obstetrics and gynecology at the University of North Carolina in 2001.

He worked as an assistant professor in obstetrics and gynecology at Wake Medical Hospital in Raleigh for seven years where he practiced high-risk obstetrics and advanced surgical gynecology. Dr. Monteith spent a significant amount of time training both medical students and residents.

Dr. Monteith is currently operating with Dr. Berger and will be certified as a tubal reversal specialist once his fellowship is completed. Dr. Monteith is now scheduling patients for tubal reversal surgery beginning July 21 at a reduced introductory fee. During July and August, Dr. Berger will assist Dr. Monteith with his tubal reversal procedures. Dr. Berger says that by the time Dr. Monteith is operating on his own, he will be well qualified as an expert and will have participated in more tubal reversal procedures than most other specialists may see in a lifetime of practice.

Dr. Monteith said, “I look forward to a successful career in tubal reversal surgery. It is with special gratitude that I thank Dr. Berger and the staff at the Chapel Hill Tubal Reversal Center for accepting me with open arms and training me in both the science and art of tubal ligation reversal.”

Chapel Hill Tubal Reversal Center is the only facility in the United States that is limited specifically to the practice of tubal reversal surgery. Additional information regarding tubal reversal surgery at Chapel Hill Tubal Reversal Center, including profiles for Dr. Berger and Dr. Monteith, can be found on the Web site at www.tubal-reversal.net.

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Julia Smith, RN
Nurse Administrator
Chapel Hill Tubal Reversal Center
JuliaS@tubal-reversal.net
Phone: (919) 656-8204

References:

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/108058.php
http://www.tubal-reversal.net/doctor-monteith.htm

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 19, 2008

Defining hope at Chapel Hill Reversal Center

Reproductive surgeon and tubal reversal expert leads the way in tubal reversal field.

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - At Chapel Hill Tubal Reversal Center, Dr. Gary Berger understands that hope is not just a word to the hundreds of women who come to his center each year. Hope is what they find in him.

When Amanda Nelson first decided to have a tubal ligation in 1997, she never imagined she would find herself in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, 4,000 miles away from her home in Cumbria, England about to undergo a tubal ligation reversal.

“I had been married for a number of years when my marriage broke down,” said Amanda. “I had two boys to look after, so I waited a year and then went ahead with my tubal ligation. At the time, the thought of having children with a different father didn’t appeal to me.”

Like Amanda, many women who come to Chapel Hill Tubal Reversal Center have faced life changes such as divorce, loss of a child or remarriage.

“Years went by, and then I met David. He had no children and happened to mention he would like one of his own some day,” said Amanda. “It took me awhile to think about it, but decided to look up having the operation.”

They began searching online for tubal reversal specialists. Their search brought them to the Chapel Hill Tubal Reversal Center Web site and Dr. Gary Berger.

Over the past 26 years, Dr. Gary Berger has performed over 7,000 tubal reversals as a one-hour, outpatient operation. Recognized as a leader in the field, Dr. Berger has been featured on The Learning Channel and Discovery Health.

Patients come to Chapel Hill from across the United States and abroad to have him perform the procedure. Using microsurgical techniques he developed and refined, Dr. Berger can successfully repair the fallopian tubes in 98 percent of the women who want their tubes untied.

Most women are typically discharged from the facility within two hours after surgery. And most resume normal activities within five to 10 days. This outcome is far better for patients than the standard approach to tubal ligation reversal that requires hospitalization for several days, longer recovery times and unnecessary hospital costs.

To learn more about Dr. Gary Berger and his team at Chapel Hill Tubal Reversal Center, visit www.tubal-reversal.net.

Lisa D. Hourmouzis, RN
Chapel Hill Tubal Reversal Center Nurse
Tel 919.968.4656
LisaH@tubal-reversal.net

Nearly 500,00 women undergo tubal ligation surgery in the United States every year. Of those women, as many as one-fourth will change their mind and desire more children after tubal ligation leading to questions about the possibility of tubal reversal surgery.

The most common question women have as they research the option of tubal reversal surgery is whether the surgery will be successful. The success of the surgery depends on several factors, including a woman’s age, the type of sterilization, and the length of tube remaining after the reversal procedure. One way to determine the outcome of the reversal surgery is through a review of the operative report from the tubal ligation. Based on this information, the tubal reversal surgeon is able to make an interpretation regarding the type of sterilization a woman has had and estimate the amount of tube that may have been damaged during the procedure. Tubal reversal specialist, Dr. Gary Berger, is a reproductive surgeon who limits his practice to tubal reversal surgery. Two-thirds of Dr. Berger’s patients become pregnant in an average of 10 months after their reversal procedure.

Another priority issue is tubal reversal cost. One reason for the increased costs quoted by some facilities is the lengthy operating time due to lack of experience with the procedure. This often means that the woman is hospitalized for several days, with significant added costs as a result. Dr. Berger has developed a low-cost, outpatient reversal procedure that has resulted in the most tubal reversal babies born worldwide. With short operating times (approximately one hour) and no overnight hospital stay required, tubal reversal cost is kept to a minimum. Dr. Berger also offers an all-inclusive fee for the reversal procedure, there are no unexpected or “hidden” costs.

Potential reversal patients often ask whether the length of time since the tubal ligation will affect the outcome of the surgery and, fortunately, the answer is no. The damage that is done to the tubes at the time of the sterilization does not worsen over time, so the length of time since the tubal ligation does not specifically affect pregnancy rates. However, age does play a factor so pregnancy rates should be viewed by age if a number of years have passed before tubal reversal surgery is performed. Fortunately, women age 40 – 42 have pregnancy rates of approximately 50% following surgery with Dr. Berger at Chapel Hill Tubal Reversal Center.

Recovery times can vary greatly between doctors and facilities, and this issue is usually mentioned as an important factor in choosing a doctor for surgery. Although everyone recovers at a different rate, most of Dr. Berger’s patients return to work in 5 – 7 days following surgery and are back to the majority of their usual activities within 7 – 10 days. Tubal reversal performed by Dr. Berger usually takes less than an hour. Minimizing operating time is important, since longer anesthesia and surgery times are associated with increased complication rates and recovery from surgery. Compare this to the standard approach for tubal reversal surgery where operating times of 3 – 4 hours can result in hospitalization for several days, a recovery period of 4 - 6 weeks, and unnecessary hospitalization costs.

Dr. Berger’s successful and safe reversal procedure has been featured on television on The Discovery and Learning Channels. Chapel Hill Tubal Reversal Center is a medical facility exclusively for tubal ligation reversal. Dr. Gary Berger is recognized as the tubal reversal doctor with the most experience with this procedure. Although tubal reversal is not right for everyone, Dr. Berger can repair the fallopian tubes in 98% of women who have had a tubal ligation and want to have another baby. These are two of the many reasons why women come from all over the US and abroad to have Dr. Berger perform their tubal ligation reversals.

Books, Magazine Articles, TV Broadcasts, Blogs and Study Reports

Press Release - New Tubal Reversal Doctor Dr. Charles Monteith has begun a 6 month fellowship program in tubal reversal surgery at Chapel Hill Tubal Reversal Center. Upon completing this program he will have participated in over 100 tubal reversal procedures and will become certified as a tubal reversal surgeon.

Press Release - September 2007 - Chapel Hill, North Carolina physician dedicates practice to restoring fertility in women who have undergone previous tubal ligation surgery.

Tubal Reversal Pregnancy Study Report 2007. The largest study of tubal reversal pregnancies and outcomes ever performed is a prospective cohort study of 3,139 patients at Chapel Hill Tubal Reversal Center.

Press Release - Tubal Reversal Study 2005. Comprehensive report presents data and statistics regarding pregnancies and their outcomes among 2692 women who had their tubal reversals performed by Dr. Berger between 2001 and 2004. This is the largest and most definitive study in existence on the outcome of tubal reversal surgery.

Press Release - Chapel Hill Tubal Reversal Center Releases 500th Baby Testimonial. Patient reports second pregnancy following tubal ligation reversal surgery by Dr. Gary S. Berger.

Dr Berger’s Article About Tubal Reversal In The Health And Medicine Section Of Squidoo.com - One of the recent additions to the Chapel Hill Tubal Reversal Center Website is this link to Dr Berger’s article about Tubal Reversal in the Health and Medicine Section of Squidoo.com. This is an important article for anyone who wants to learn more about outpatient tubal ligation reversal.

The Operation – Discovery Channel production featuring the outpatient surgical techniques of Gary S. Berger, M.D. - a pioneer in tubal ligation reversal surgery. Originally aired as part of the series, “The Operation”, the film has also been featured on “The CBS Early Morning Show”. “The Operation” provides detailed information and live footage as Dr. Berger restores fertility after tubal ligation through a comfortable and affordable one-hour outpatient procedure. Available free as a videotape or DVD.

Tubal Ligation Reversal on Blogspot - Daily news and blog about tubal reversal, the outpatient surgery that restores fertility allowing women to become pregnant and have more babies after a tubal ligation.

Conceive Magazine – It seemed like a good idea at the time…but if you have been surgically sterilized and you’d now like to be pregnant again, here’s what you need to know. Conceive Magazine article, “Changing Your Mind” features Gary S. Berger, M.D. and Chapel Hill Tubal Reversal Center.

M.D. News Magazine– The article, “Outpatient Tubal Ligation Reversal - Fertility Restored Through One Hour Outpatient Surgery” features Gary S. Berger, M.D., Medical Director of Chapel Hill Tubal Reversal Center.

The Couple’s Guide to Fertility - Dr. Gary S. Berger and Dr. Marc Goldstein —specialists in male and female reproductive treatment — thoroughly examine the causes of infertility, the tests you may undergo, and the state-of-the-art treatments that can help you to have a baby, including tubal reversal surgery. The book is now in its third edition.

Tubal Reversal - Our Journeys - A collection of true stories from women who have undergone tubal reversal surgery that brings alive what the journey is really like through the eyes of those who have lived it.