GREENVILLE, SC and MEDFORD, MA / ACCESSWIRE / August 1, 2017 / INVO Bioscience, Inc. (OTC PINK: IVOB), a medical device company who was granted FDA clearance for the first Intravaginal Culture System, INVOcell™, and Piedmont Reproductive Endocrinology Group (PREG), one of the leading fertility clinics in the country, today announced it has successfully launched and recently completed their 16th cycle utilizing the INVOcell.
INVOcell is a patented medical device used in the treatment of infertility that enables egg fertilization and early embryo development to take place in the woman's body, in vivo. Doctors at PREG began offering INVOcell to patients in February 2017, as a simplified, lower cost option to traditional in vitro fertilization (IVF). With 16 cycles now completed, PREG confirms there have been 8 clinical pregnancies or a 50% clinical pregnancy rate to date.
Dr. John Nichols, founder of Piedmont Reproductive Endocrinology Group (PREG)
PREG, with four locations throughout South and North Carolina, has received local and national attention for being leaders in the field of reproductive medicine. Founded in 2003 by Dr. John Nichols, PREG is a private infertility clinic consistently recognized nationally for their exceptional pregnancy success rates. PREG now has six in-house physicians - Dr. John Nichols, Dr. John Payne, Dr. James Holman, Dr. Travis McCoy, Dr. Edward Tarnawa, and Dr. Gail Whitman-Elia - who specialize in advanced infertility treatments. Headquartered in Greenville, South Carolina, PREG's nearly 7,000 square-foot facility contains a Surgical Suite, accredited by the American Association of Ambulatory Surgical Facilities, as well as In Vitro Fertilization, Andrology, and Endocrine laboratories. Their practice is the only one in the Southeast, with two IVF labs, as well as two surgery centers since they obtained Advanced Fertility Institute in Columbia, South Carolina in 2016.
John E. Nichols, Jr. MD, founder of Piedmont Reproductive Endocrinology Group, commented, "We are very excited to be partnering with INVO Bioscience and offering the INVOcell device, along with milder ovarian stimulation protocols. We are now happily providing this to our patients and calling it our SIMPLY IVF procedure. This game-changing procedure allows many qualified patients access to advanced fertility treatments at about half the cost of traditional IVF with less office visits, blood work and monitoring and almost equal pregnancy rates as standard IVF."
The INVO Solution:
- Allows women to incubate their own gametes, providing a psychological benefit while reducing the risk of wrong embryo transfer;
- Uses Mild Stimulation protocols and decreases the number of oocytes required, which may:
- Reduce the risk of severe ovarian hyperstimulation (OHSS)
- Reduce the risk of multiple births
- Reduce the need for embryo cryopreservation and storage
- Can be successfully utilized in place of Intrauterine insemination (IUI), which may:
- Increase success rate as IUI only achieves a general success rate of 10-20%
- Decrease the number and cost of procedures as IUI often requires multiple procedures compared to a single INVO cycle
- Expands new patient base in IVF centers by offering an alternative affordable treatment to those who cannot afford the traditional method or would prefer for a more natural, cultural, or religious appropriate choice
- Is a lower cost option
"We are pleased to be working with a high-profile clinic like Piedmont Reproductive Endocrinology Group," said Katie Karloff, Chair and Chief Executive Officer of INVO Bioscience. "Dr. Nichols and his team have been providing fertility treatments for many years and is well-respected and sought out by many couples seeking fertility treatments. We look forward to providing families in the southeast the INVOcell solution, which has exhibited equivalent pregnancy results at a fraction of the cost to traditional treatment options currently available on the market, today and for years to come."
About INVO Bioscience
We are a medical device company focused on creating simplified, lower cost treatments for patients diagnosed with infertility. Our solution, the INVO Procedure, is a disruptive new technology. The INVO Procedure is a revolutionary in vivo method of vaginal incubation that offers patients a more natural and intimate experience. Our lead product, the INVOcell, is a patented medical device used in infertility treatment and is considered an Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART). The INVOcell is the first Intravaginal Culture (IVC) system in the world used for the natural in vivo incubation of eggs and sperm during fertilization and early embryo development, as an alternative to traditional In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) and Intrauterine Insemination (IUI). Our mission is to increase access to care and expand fertility treatment across the globe with a goal to lower the cost of care and increase availability of care. For more information, please visit https://invobioscience.com/.
Safe Harbor Statement
This release includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. The Company invokes the protections of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements regarding our expected future financial position, results of operations, cash flows, financing plans, business strategies, products and services, competitive positions, growth opportunities, plans and objectives of management for future operations, as well as statements that include words such as "anticipate," "if," "believe," "plan," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "may," "could," "should," "will," and other similar expressions are forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements involve risks, uncertainties and contingencies, many of which are beyond our control, which may cause actual results, performance, or achievements to differ materially from anticipated results, performance, or achievements. Factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements include those set forth in our filings at www.sec.gov. We are under no obligation to (and expressly disclaim any such obligation to) update or alter our forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
Contact:
INVO Bioscience, Inc.
Kathleen Karloff, CEO
978-878-9505 ext. 504
[email protected]
Piedmont Reproductive Endocrinology Group
Dr. John Nichols, Founder
866-725-7734
www.pregonline.com
SOURCE: INVO Bioscience, Inc.