Reproductive endocrinology and infertility (REI) is a surgical

subspecialty A subspecialty or subspeciality (see spelling differences) is a narrow field of professional knowledge/skills within a specialty of trade, and is most commonly used to describe the increasingly more diverse medical specialties. A subspecialist is ...

obstetrics and gynecology Obstetrics and gynaecology (also spelled as obstetrics and gynecology; abbreviated as Obst and Gynae, O&G, OB-GYN and OB/GYN) is the medical specialty that encompasses the two subspecialties of obstetrics (covering pregnancy, childbirth, and t ...

that trains physicians in

reproductive medicine Reproductive medicine is a branch of medicine concerning the male and female reproductive systems. It encompasses a variety of reproductive conditions, their prevention and assessment, as well as their subsequent treatment and prognosis. Reprodu ...

addressing

hormonal A hormone (from the Greek participle , "setting in motion") is a class of signaling molecules in multicellular organisms that are sent to distant organs or tissues by complex biological processes to regulate physiology and behavior. Hormones a ...

functioning as it pertains to

reproduction Reproduction (or procreation or breeding) is the biological process by which new individual organisms – "offspring" – are produced from their "parent" or parents. There are two forms of reproduction: Asexual reproduction, asexual and Sexual ...

as well as the issue of

infertility In biology, infertility is the inability of a male and female organism to Sexual reproduction, reproduce. It is usually not the natural state of a healthy organism that has reached sexual maturity, so children who have not undergone puberty, whi ...

. While most REI specialists primarily focus on the treatment of

, reproductive endocrinologists are trained to also test and treat hormonal dysfunctions in females and males outside infertility. Reproductive endocrinologists have specialty training (residency) in

(ob-gyn) before they undergo sub-specialty training (fellowship) in REI. Reproductive surgery is a related specialty, where a physician in ob-gyn or

urology Urology (from Ancient Greek, Greek wikt:οὖρον, οὖρον ''ouron'' "urine" and ''wiktionary:-logia, -logia'' "study of"), also known as genitourinary surgery, is the branch of medicine that focuses on surgical and medical diseases of t ...

further specializes to operate on anatomical disorders that affect

fertility Fertility in colloquial terms refers the ability to have offspring. In demographic contexts, fertility refers to the actual production of offspring, rather than the physical capability to reproduce, which is termed fecundity. The fertility rate ...

Certification

In a number of countries, the pathway to become a subspecialist in REI is regulated. Thus, in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, for instance, the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology (ABOG) and

American Osteopathic Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology The American Osteopathic Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology (AOBOG) is an organization that provides board certification to qualified Doctors of Osteopathic Medicine (D.O.) who specialize in the care of the female reproductive tract and children ...

set the standards for subspecialists to become certified. After four years of training in Obstetrics and Gynecology, a three-year approved

fellowship A fellow is a title and form of address for distinguished, learned, or skilled individuals in academia, medicine, research, and industry. The exact meaning of the term differs in each field. In learned or professional societies, the term refers ...

needs to be successfully completed. Then, to become board certified in reproductive endocrinology and infertility, one must first complete

board certification Board certification is the process by which a physician, veterinarian, or other professional demonstrates a mastery of advanced knowledge and skills through written, oral, practical, or simulator-based testing. Certification bodies There are mor ...

(written and oral exams), and then certify in reproductive endocrinology and infertility (written and oral exams). In the United States, fellowship in ''reproductive endocrinology and infertility'' usually takes 3 years, and is offered in 40 centers across the country as of 2013. In the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...

, the European Board and College of Obstetrics and Gynaecology (EBCOG) has accreditation centers for a subspecialist training program in ''reproductive medicine'' at 4 centers across the EU as of 2012. In

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

and

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

, a training program in ''reproductive endocrinology and infertility'' takes 3 years, and is offered in 15 centers across the two countries. In

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

, Assisted Reproductive Technology bill has been passed in parliament

This bill mandates Gynaecologist, gyncelogists or andrologists to have 3 years of experience in recognized ART centers to conduct procedures such as IVF, PGT.

Societies

Reproductive endocrinologists Certified by ACOG often belong to a specific medical society named ''Society for Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility'' (SREI). As a condition of full membership, medical practitioners must be ACOG-certified in the reproductive endocrinology and infertility subspecialty.Society for Reproductive Endocrinology Brochure
Retrieved on Jan. 21, 2011.

Journals

* ''Human Reproduction'' is published on behalf of the

European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology The European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology (ESHRE) was founded in 1985 by Robert Edwards (University of Cambridge) and Jean Cohen (Paris), who felt that the study and research in the field of reproduction needed to be encouraged and ...

. According to

SCImago Journal Rank The SCImago Journal Rank (SJR) indicator is a measure of the prestige of scholarly journals that accounts for both the number of citations received by a journal and the prestige of the journals where the citations come from. Etymology SCImago ...

, its

review journal A review article is an article that summarizes the current state of understanding on a topic within a certain discipline. A review article is generally considered a secondary source since it may analyze and discuss the method and conclusions ...

''Human Reproduction Update'' was the highest ranking journal in

in 2008. * ''Reproduction'' is published on behalf of the Society for Reproduction and Fertility in the United Kingdom. * ''Reproductive Biology and Endocrinology'' (RB&E) is an online

open access journal Open access (OA) is a set of principles and a range of practices through which nominally copyrightable publications are delivered to readers free of access charges or other barriers. With open access strictly defined (according to the 2001 de ...

published by BioMed Central.Reproductive Biology and Endocrinology > about
Retrieved on May 29, 2010 It deals with both veterinary and human reproductive medicine. * ''Fertility and Sterility'' is a monthly journal from the

American Society for Reproductive Medicine The American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) is a nonprofit, multidisciplinary organization for advancement of the science and practice of reproductive medicine. The society has its headquarters in Washington, D.C., and its administrat ...

Also, many academic journals in obstetrics and gynaecology dedicate many articles to reproductive endocrinology and infertility.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Reproductive Endocrinology And Infertility Andrology Fertility medicine Gynaecological endocrinology Obstetrics de:Reproduktionsmedizin

Certification

Societies

Journals

See also

References