Frozen Embryo Delivers Infant to Childless Couple (Delaware County Daily Times)

Outside the Riley home in Havertown, little pink buds peek into the nursery window as though they're anxious to see the new life inside.

They burst into bloom a week ago just about the same time Marisa Petra Riley burst in to the world.

Like the buds on the tree outside her bedroom window, the infant's roots were in hibernation for several months. The embryo that brought forth the baby was actually fertilized 13 months before her birth on April 19.

Marisa Riley is the first baby in the mid-Atlantic region and the 10th baby in the country to be born from an embryo that was fertilized in vitro-outside her mother's body-then frozen or cryogenically preserved before being implanted in her mother's womb. The process is called cryopreservation.

She was born to Teresa and Kevin Riley at 3:46 p.m. April 19 at Albert Einstein Medical Center. The blue-eyed babe is a healthy 7 pounds, 4 ounces.

Because her mother had a slight fever during labor, the baby has been detained at Einstein for observation to ensure that she is well, said Dr. Martin Freedman, director of Einstein's in vitro fertilization program. She is due to go home to Havertown on Sunday.

"Dr. (Arnold) Cohen got her out of me and brought her onto my chest," recalled a beaming Teresa Riley. "It was the most emotional experience I've ever had."

"Teresa and I cried," Kevin added.

Before Marisa was conceived in 1987, the couple had been trying to have children for six years. She is now 35 and he is 34. In 1984, they sought the help of Freedman, who is a specialist in reproductive endocrinology and infertility.

"Mrs. Riley suffered from endometriosis, pelvic adhesions and she did not ovulate well," explained Freedman who took the couple through a course of treatment that included fertility drugs and surgery. "She had one ectopic (tubal) pregnancy and one miscarriage.

Last spring, they decided to try to conceive a child outside of Teresa's body.

On March 15, 1987, Freedman retrieved 13 eggs from her ovaries then added Kevin's sperm to then in a laboratory dish for invitro fertilization. Within two days, 11 embryos had developed.

Four embryos were immediately introduced onto Mrs. Riley's uterus and the remaining seven were preserved in a liquid nitrogen storage tank with a temperature of minus 196 degrees Celsius or 257 degrees below zero Fahrenheit.

In April, Teresa tested positive for pregnancy, but miscarried two weeks later. On June 10, 1987, two frozen embryos were thawed and transferred to her uterus, but her pregnancy test proved negative on June 23.

The following July 18, two more frozen embryos were thawed and nine days later, she was pregnant. Last Aug. 18; a fetal heartbeat was detected through ultrasound.

"We were cautiously optimistic," said Teresa Riley who experienced premature labor on both the 34th and 35th weeks of pregnancy and had to be hospitalized.

At. 8 a.m., April 19, two weeks after the baby was due, labor was induced via the drug Pitocin. A little more than seven hours later, Marisa Petra entered the scene to an audience that included Freedman, perinatologist Dr. Arnold Cohen and Dr. Susan Heyner who directs research in obstetrics and gynecology at Einstein.

"I feel like "I'm the second father," grinned Freedman, who has three children of his own. "It's unbelievable to see a live infant who has been conceived in a petri dish much less one from an embryo that has been frozen, then thawed out."

Technically, Marisa could have a twin several years down the road since two embryos conceived when she was, are still frozen, said Freedman. The chance of another embryo successfully implanting could be influenced by any changes in Mrs. Riley's uterine environment, he noted.

"I started my residency in 1977, the year before Louise Brown - the first invitro baby-was born (in England) and even in 1978 it was a complex issue," noted Freedman. "So much has happened in reproductive technology in the last 10 years that it is amazing to think what's going to happen in the next 10 years. I think we'll see the advent of egg banks."

The world's first frozen embryo baby was born in Australia in 1984. Since Freedman successfully implanted the frozen embryo in Teresa Riley, he has repeated the procedure on four other women who have not become pregnant. His most recent transfer of a frozen embryo was April 22. He'll test the woman for pregnancy next week.

The Rileys, who are normally private people, said they decided to publicize their success with a frozen embryo to give hope to other couples.

"It's important to let people know that they can have this impact their lives," said Kevin. "It's important that they never take 'no' for an answer."

The Rileys figure that by the time Marisa is old enough to understand, her unique type of conception will be routine. For now, they intent to load her with love, even if it means making the long commute to the hospital.

"She's doing what every normal baby does, smiled Teresa, who has been with Marisa at the hospital an average of 12 hours a day. "I tell her how wonderful her father is, how much we love her and how beautiful we think she is."

Added the doting mother, "These are her first days of life and we want to see her opening her eyes for the first time, smiling for the first time, whether it's here or at home. We've waited too long to have this baby to let where it's all happening stop us."