Research within Stanford's Fertility and Reproductive Health

At Stanford Fertility and Reproductive Health, we are dedicated to improving outcomes for all patients that we see through transformative work in embryology, epidemiology, basic science and clinical trials.

Prior work has included:

  • Innovations in fertility preservation
  • Embryo culture
  • Miscarriage testing
  • Preimplantation genetic testing of embryos
  • Male and female causes of infertility
  • Cost effectiveness analysis
  • Long term health studies
  • Microbiome analysis

We are currently initiating several clinical trials aimed at the analysis and treatment of implantation failure and predictors of healthy pregnancy outcomes after frozen embryo transfer. 

Fertility and pregnancy loss research

Miscarriage is the most common complication of early pregnancy, occurring in 10-40% of all pregnancies. Recurrent pregnancy loss (RPL) is a disease distinct from infertility, defined as the spontaneous loss of two or more pregnancies and affects as many as 5% of couples attempting to build their families.  There are many known causes of miscarriage including genetic, uterine, and circulatory disorders, however the majority of patients with RPL remain without definite answers as to the cause of their pregnancy losses.

Ruth Lathi, MD, is the Director of Research for Fertility and Reproductive Health and founder of the Stanford multispecialty Recurrent Pregnancy Loss program. Dr. Lathi first became interested in research while working with Dr. Eric Lander at MIT, investigating genetic causes of hypertension. This experience taught her the power of collaborative work and innovative genetic techniques in discovering mechanisms of disease.

For more information about any current or past research projects or inquiries about potential collaboration or participation, please contact the research operations team.

Phone: (408) 688-9892

  1. TRIOS/HOPE - Harness multiple Opportunities for Pregnancy loss Exploration
    A multi-pronged research study involving molecular profiling, machine learning, and whole genome sequencing of the trio at the center of recurrent pregnancy loss — the mother, the father, and past pregnancies.

  2. TAME (Transfer of Abnormal and Mosaic Embryos)
    This clinical research study will investigate the pregnancy outcomes of transferring abnormal and mosaic embryos.

  3. Biobanking
    Two research biobanks are established for patients who are interested in donating excess specimens to research.

  4. Natural vs Programed Frozen Embryo Transfer (NatPro)
    This clinical research study will compare pregnancy rates and patient experience with 2 commonly used frozen embryo transfer protocols and investigate the cause of pregnancy complications after IVF-FET.

  5. Evaluation of Ovarian Reserve, Aging and Fertility Preservation in Women with Sickle Cell Disease
    Little data exists on how the sickle cell disease (SCD) process may affect ovarian function; this study aims to learn more about fertility in women with SCD and how its treatments affect female fertility and reproduction.