Handbook of the Assisted Reproduction Laboratory by Brooks A. Keel (Editor), Jeffrey V. May (Editor), Christopher J. De Jonge Purchase at:  Amazon.com  Format: Hardcover, 416pp.  ISBN: 0849316774 Publisher: CRC Press, LLC  Pub. Date: June 2000

Description from Amazon.com

Book Description 

The Handbook of the Assisted Reproduction Laboratory addresses many of the management issues and basic background information on reproductive biology and medicine needed by the technicians staffing and directing these ART labs. With its in-depth analysis of management issues, as well as basic background information on reproductive biology and medicine, it serves as the ideal guide for current investigation and as a stimulus for future developments in the field.

Description from BarnesandNoble.com

Annotation

The book contains black-and-white illustrations.

From the Publisher

With the advent of Assisted Reproductive Technologies, ourunderstanding of the reproductive system in both men and women has progressed in an exponential manner.

Along with this increase in knowledge has emerged new and advanced laboratories performing unique techniques aimed at diagnosing and treating infertility problems. And as these laboratories expand, the need for properly trained technicians has also emerged. But while many ART labs are staffed with biologists well trained in reproductive research techniques, they lack the necessary skills to effectively manage these labs.

The Handbook of the Assisted Reproduction Laboratory addresses many of the management issues and basic background information on reproductive biology and medicine needed by the technicians staffing and directing these ART labs.

Internationally recognized experts in the field discuss various topics in this handbook, which: * Reviews male and female reproductive systems and processes * Discusses the clinical diagnosis and management of male and female infertility * Provides new information on the state-of-the-art techniques of egg and embryo culture, micromanipulation, and biopsy * Presents various aspects of quality control, quality assurance, and clinical laboratory management With its in-depth analysis of management issues, as well as basic background information on reproductive biology and medicine, the Handbook of the Assisted Reproduction Laboratory serves as an ideal guide for current investigation and as a stimulus for future developments in the field.

From Doody Review Services

Reviewer: Valerie L. Ng, PhD, MD (University of California San Francisco)

Description: This is a reference text in which all aspects of assisted reproduction are covered, from basic human anatomy to reproduction biology, clinical protocols for obtaining specimens for in vitro fertilization laboratory manipulations, and current laboratory methods.

Purpose: This is intended as a management tool for directors of assisted reproduction laboratories, a training guide for technologists and bench personnel, a study resource for students, and a review resource for assisted reproduction practitioners about to undergo examination for board certification.

Audience: This book would be useful for anyone interested in assisted reproduction. The key audience, however, would be personnel working in assisted reproduction laboratories.

Features: The text is visually dense but thorough, and the editors and contributors do a nice job of covering basic science, clinical protocols, and the newer in vitro laboratory techniques for assisted reproduction (e.g., ZD, PZD, SUZI, ICSI). The chapters in which overall laboratory practice and administration are covered, however, are not useful because they are too general. For example, the chapter on the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Act ("CLIA") is simply a summary of the official document and would benefit by customization for laboratory practice in assisted reproduction laboratories. Another shortcoming is the minimal coverage of ethics. Ethics continues to be a dominant issue in this field yet the single chapter on ethics has only brief coverage of the framework and principles of ethics andsuperficial references to selected ethical dilemmas in assisted reproduction that have received disproportionate media scrutiny. Finally, an executive of and shareholder in a for-profit commercial entity in the specialty of reproductive medicine authors the chapter on Managed Care and ART:raising the specter of a serious conflict of interest influencing the opinions and recommendations in this chapter.

Assessment: This book would appeal to a limited market:primarily those individuals working in assisted reproduction laboratories. It would serve as a useful reference text for the scientific aspects of assisted reproduction.

From Booknews

Arguing that assisted reproductive technologies (ART) laboratories are staffed with biologists who have excellent research qualifications but lack clinical lab expertise, the editors (obstetrics and gynecology, two from U. of Kansas, and the other from U. of Minnesota) present a manual explaining the clinical skills necessary to running quality laboratories. Seventeen chapters cover topics such as human fertilization, implantation, male and female infertility, ovarian stimulation, oocyte and pre-embryo classification, micromanipulation of gametes and zygotes, and quality assurance. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Table of Contents

Human Fertilization
Overview of Spermatogenesis and Ejaculation
Implantation
Evaluation of Male Infertility
Female Infertility
Ovarian Stimulation and Ovulation Induction
Oocyte and Pre-Embryo Classification
Oocyte and Embryo Culture
Micromanipulation of Human Gametes, Zygotes, and Embryos
Quality Control: A Framework for the ART Laboratory
Internal and External Quality Control in the Andrology Laboratory
Quality Assurance in the Embryology, Andrology, and Endocrine Laboratories
Quality Control, Quality Assurance, and Management of the Cryopreservation Laboratory
Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments of 1988 (CLIA '88): A Review
The Physician-Laboratory Relationship
Ethics and the Assisted Reproductive Technologies
Managed Care and ART
Index