UTERUS
UAB performed its first uterus transplant in 2022 , and the patient is faring well as she awaits the next steps of embryo transfer . The procedure helps some patients overcome uterine factor infertility ( UFI ), a condition in which a woman cannot achieve pregnancy because she was born without a uterus , had it surgically removed during a hysterectomy , or has a uterus that does not function properly . UFI is estimated to affect as many as 5 % of childbearing-aged women worldwide and once was an irreversible form of female infertility . The first successful uterus transplant was performed in Sweden in 2014 , and about 100 uterus transplants have been performed in the world , including over 30 in the United States .
Women interested in uterus transplantation undergo significant physical and psychological evaluation to ensure that they understand the risks of the procedure and have considered alternatives . If the woman is approved , the process starts with creating an embryo using in vitro fertilization , in which the woman ’ s eggs are retrieved and fertilized with sperm . Next , a healthy uterus is transplanted into the patient . About six months after a successful uterus transplant , a single embryo is implanted into the uterus . If it leads to a successful pregnancy , the pregnancy is treated as high-risk , and the baby will be delivered via Cesarean section , as women with UFI cannot delivery vaginally .
ORGANS – UTERUS
UAB ’ s innovative Uterus Transplant Program is a unique collaboration with the UAB Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology . It is codirected by UAB abdominal organ transplant surgeon and immunologist Paige Porrett , MD , PhD – who also serves as director of Clinical and Translational Research for the UAB Comprehensive Transplant Institute and associate professor of surgery in the UAB Division of Transplantation – and Charles A . “ Trey ” Leath III , MD , director of the UAB Division of Gynecologic Oncology . Dr . Porrett started the nation ’ s third uterus transplant program at the University of Pennsylvania , along with colleagues from the Penn Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology . UAB ’ s program is the first of its kind in the southeast and only the fourth in the United States .
Babies born from uterus transplant recipients tend to be born early , at about 35 weeks of gestation . Caring for these premature infants often requires a stay in a neonatal intensive care unit for several weeks . After the baby is born and if the woman does not want more children , the transplanted uterus is removed with a hysterectomy procedure , and the woman no longer needs to take anti-rejection medications . The entire process can take 2-5 years .
To speak to a member of the uterus transplant team , please call 833-UAB-CTI1 , or visit uabmedicine . org / uterustransplant to learn more .
HOW DOES UTERUS TRANSPLANTATION WORK ? UAB ’ s Uterus Transplant Program offers an effective treatment for absolute uterine factor infertility . uabmedicine . org / refertransplant 35