Success Stories - Pregnancy Doctor Penang

Conceived Naturally After Losing Weight

When Subashini Arumugan came to me, she was 31 years old and had been married for 4 years. She lived in Kota Kinabalu. Yes, she came to me all the way from Sabah.

I diagnosed her as a case of sub-fertility as her menstrual cycles were irregular and she also had a history of excessive weight gain. I advised her to modify her diet and try exercising so that she could lose some excess weight.

I was happy to say that she was diligent and 6 months into our sessions, Subashini conceived naturally!

She came to me for her antenatal care and pregnancy check-ups. Except for developing pregnancy-induced hypertension, she had a very good and stable pregnancy.

She opted to deliver her baby using a Caesarean section and successfully delivered a baby boy weighing a healthy 3.1 kg.

Pregnant Mum With Congenital Heart Disease

Madam Loo Keat Kheng was 32 years old but she was a unique patient in that she was diagnosed with congenital heart disease.

She came to see me in 2010 and told me she had had a previous ectopic pregnancy. She wanted my advice as she had conceived again but was highly worried for her 6-week old pregnancy.

As this was a high risk pregnancy (with the pregnant mum having congenital heart disease), I worked closely with a consultant cardiologist to monitor Madam Loo’s pregnancy week by week.

She also suffered from excessive vomitting and nausea which we had to admit her into the hospital for observation and monitoring.

At 39 weeks, she went into spontaneous labour but we were happy to note that her baby was healthy at 3.8kg.

Despite the earlier problems, Madam Loo was well enough to go home with her baby on the 3rd day.

She is still closely monitored by my colleague, the cardiologist, but she is doing well.

Blocked Fallopian Tube Yet Conceived!

Madam Gunamony Suja and her husband came to see me in November 2009. They had been diagnosed as sub-fertile.

During my routine investigation, I discovered that one of Madam Gunamony’s Fallopian tubes was blocked. I advised her to undergo a minor surgery.

After that, I put her on a fertility treatment. She responded well and in October 2010, she conceived.

She was very pleased and came to me for routine antenatal check-ups.

She delivered a healthy baby boy weighing 2.8kg by assisted vacuum delivery.

Mother Second Time Around

Choon Jia Ying was a 26 year old mother who had lost her first child when she came to me for pre-conception counselling.

Her first baby suffered from congenital heart disease and passed away a few days after being born.

Jia Ying was devastated but she was also determined to have a baby.

We met for a few counselling sessions. One day, she announced to me that she had conceived naturally!

While pregnant, I told her to be extra careful and referred her to a paediatric cardiologist just to make sure this baby was going to be fine.

We ensured that she underwent enough prenatal testing and anomaly scans.

By December that same year, Jia Ying gave birth to a healthy and beautiful baby girl weighing in at 3.2 kg.

I am glad she had the courage to try for a baby the second time around.

Sweet Success After Trying For 6 Years…

Madam Suganthi and her husband came to see me all the way from Kuala Lumpur. They were recommended by their friends and believed that I could help them with their conception.

They were extremely worried as they had been trying unsuccessfully for the past 6 years to have a baby.

When I investigated the both of them (through a series of tests and assessments), I couldn’t see any abnormalities.

I did however offer counselling and advice, putting their fears to rest. Once they knew they were healthy and had nothing wrong, they were relieved.

After 3 months, Madam Suganthi announced that they had conceived naturally!

Although they wanted to travel to Penang to see me for antenatal care, I advised them not to do so. Since they live and work in Kuala Lumpur, they were better having their antenatal care in Kuala Lumpur.

They protested initially but we compromised – they insisted on coming to Penang for the delivery.

Madam Suganthi delivered via Caesarean Section a healthy baby boy.

PCOS & Severe Period Pain But Conceived!

Madam Liew Chew Lee came to me in November 2009 initially for a totally different reason.

She often suffered from severe lower abdominal pain each time she had her period. At the same time, she also had a history of sub-fertility for the last couple of years.

I put her through a diagnostic laparoscopic almost immediately and discovered that she had polycystic ovaries or polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).

She was treated with a session of ovarian drilling and adhesiolysis during the laparascopy surgery.

Ovarian drilling uses a laser fibre or electrosurgical needle to puncture the ovary 4 to 10 times. This treatment lowers the male hormones dramatically within days. It is usually carried out in women who have polycystic ovary syndrome.

She recovered after her surgery and we started her on some hormonal therapy to treat her polycystic ovaries.

In January the following year, she conceived spontaneously after undergoing fertility treatment.

Despite her earlier problems, she had a smooth pregnancy, coming to me regularly for her antenatal and pregnancy check-ups. She finally delivered her baby boy in October of the same year.

Pregnant with Twins Despite Sub Fertility Problem

I first met Puan Nur Hasliza and her husband in 2009.

They were investigated and found to have a history of subfertility. Before coming to see me, they had consulted a couple of GPs.

When they came to me, I did some baseline investigations and put her on a cycle of fertility drugs.

I also advised them that they needed to watch their diet with some diet modifications.

A couple of months later, Nur Hasliza visited me and said she had missed her period. She wanted to test and I gave her a urine test. The test came back positive!

After many long months, she was finally pregnant. You should have seen the look on her face! She and her husband were thrilled.

But pregnancies can be challenging too.

A week later, she was admitted into Gleneagles Medical Centre after she complained of severe and sudden lower abdominal pain. I suspected an ectopic pregnancy.

When I performed an emergency diagnostic laparoscopy on her, I first assessed her Fallopian tubes. They were normal but the laparascopy uncovered a large ovarian cyst which I removed immediately.

Two weeks later, I assessed her again and was happy to tell her that she was indeed pregnant – with twins!

Like any good mother, she came in regularly for her antenatal check-ups and in April 2010, she decided to undergo a Caesarean section.

Nur Hasliza finally made her dream come true – she gave birth to a baby boy weighing 2.3kg and a girl weighing 1.8kg.

She and her babies were discharged on the 3rd day.

Overweight With PCOS Problem

Puan Sabarina was 23 years old and weighed 92kg when she first came to me as a patient in January 2009.

She had a history of irregular menses for the past two years.

She shared with me that she had been also trying to conceive for the past two years as well.

When I scheduled some preliminary check-ups for her, we discovered that she was having Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome or PCOS, for short.

Mainly, PCOS refers to a hormonal imbalance. The ovaries make more androgens than normal. Androgens are male hormones that females also make. High levels of these hormones affect the development and release of eggs during ovulation.

I advised her that she needed to lose weight and look into her diet closely. She was clearly overweight and this did not work in her favour if she wanted to get pregnant.

However, even after 5 months of exercise and diet adjustment, she had only lost 4kg. We decided then and there that she needed to try another method so we put her on hormonal therapy.

Once she was put on hormonal therapy, her periods started to become regular. And I am proud to say that she took it upon herself to continue exercising and dieting and managed to lose another 3kg in the following 3 months.

Since she had been trying to conceive naturally without much results, I suggested she undergo SuperOvulation and Intrauterine Insemination.

On her second attempt using these methods, Sabarina conceived. Her pregnancy was good without any complications or health problems. She continued to see me regularly for her antenatal check-ups with her husband.

Sabarina finally delivered a healthy baby girl weighing 3.3kg via elective Caesarean section and both were healthy enough to go home on the fourth day after delivery.

Pregnant Despite Irregular Menstrual Cycles

When Madam Goh Sze Chie and her husband came to me, they had been trying to conceive for the past three years.

This couple had a history of sub-fertility which meant that they had failed to conceive after a year of regular, unprotected sexual intercourse.

They were, understandably, worried. This sub-fertility was attributed to Madam Goh having irregular menstrual cycles.

They had started to look for other assisted options to get pregnant. Madam Goh tried two rounds of IUI (Intra Uterine Insemination) where the husband’s semen was processed in our laboratory before the sperm was transferred into the wife’s uterus during her time of ovulation.

This procedure needs no anaesthesia. However, this procedure is only meant for couples with coital problem, borderline male problem and unexplained sub-fertility.

Unfortunately the two rounds of IUI were not successful.

Yet in April 2011, I was overjoyed when I heard that Madam Goh had conceived naturally.

Her natural pregnancy wasn’t without problems. In the early months, we feared complications as she had a threatened miscarriage. I quickly advised her to be admitted into Gleneagles Medical Centre where we treated her with plenty of bed rest and gave her the Progestogen treatment.

Once she was out of the danger zone, she was allowed to go home. Her pregnancy was smooth sailing and we met regularly when she came in to see me for her antenatal check-ups at my clinic.

At 33 weeks, she was admitted into the hospital again when she felt her water bag burst.

I made sure she was admitted and monitored closely as her baby at 33 weeks was still considered premature. However, 2 weeks later, she went into spontaneous labour, giving birth to a healthy baby girl weighing 2.7 kg.