Transcription:

Caitlin Whyte: Welcome to Right Beside You, a Reid Health podcast. I'm Caitlin Whyte. And today, we're talking about NaPro technology. Our expert is Dr. Tina Reichley, a family medicine physician at Reid Health. So Dr. Reichley, we'll start with a pretty basic question right now. What is NaPro?

Tina Reichley, MD: Yeah. A lot of people don't know what that is. So actually NaPro technology stands for natural procreative technology. It is actually this year, 2021, it's celebrating 30 years of evidence-based science. So it really is the first system to ever kind of fully integrate family planning and women's reproductive health care. So kind of in short, it puts a microscope to the female reproductive system.

Caitlin Whyte: Well, that sounds incredible. Tell us how it all works.

Tina Reichley, MD: So the cornerstone of NaPro technology is actually a Creighton Fertility Care System, which is a fertility awareness-based method that actually utilizes a woman's observation of cervical mucus. And then, with that process and that charting, we can actually accurately record ovulation and ovulation function and then decide if there is issues and underlying causes and then kind of dive down into fertility or reproductive problems or concerns that females may have.

Caitlin Whyte: What exactly does NaPro treat and who benefits from it?

Tina Reichley, MD: So NaPro can be used for many, many things. We think about it a lot when we're talking about infertility. It is very reliable in helping couples avoid and achieve pregnancy. But then those couples that have trouble with infertility, it works on really kind of evaluating infertile couples and kind of delving down to identifying the cause and then the treatment.

And kind of the fun thing about NaPro is if we have a couple that comes in and, you know, they've had issues with infertility, if they simply use the fertility awareness-based method, the Creighton model, they can achieve pregnancy 20 to 40% of the time. If we then use the medical treatment, which is the NaPro technology with the Creighton model, that actually goes up to 80%. So infertile couples, with using NaPro technology, can potentially have an 80% success rate, which is definitely, to be quite honest, much better than the artificial attempts that people have been using in the past. And then we have a very low incidence of prematurity and multiple births, because again we treat the underlying problem and that actually leads to better care, better pregnancies, you know, from that standpoint.

But kind of the fun thing is, I mean it's great in regards to infertility, but those individuals that have problems with miscarriages, maintaining pregnancies, we can figure out a lot of times the cause related to that and treat that. But, you know, even if you're not planning on getting pregnant, so irregular periods, hormonal problems, PMS, postpartum depression, ovarian cysts, unusual bleeding, you know, on and on and on and on, polycystic ovaries. It just has so many avenues that we can use and treat, which makes this technology and doing this just so much fun.

Caitlin Whyte: Yeah, well, it sounds like an incredible option to have. How can someone get started? Who would they talk to first? Where do they go?

Tina Reichley, MD: So we have a website www.fertilitycarerichmond.com. So that has how to get in contact with our practitioners that actually teach the Creighton model, because I kind of tell people there's a little upfront work because you do have to kind of learn kind of the charting techniques, but it is just wonderful in regards to kind of the long-term goals, the long-term options. It just empowers women with the knowledge of their fertility and then can lead couples and women in understanding and kind of respecting their bodies and really kind of working with their bodies, which is just wonderful. And they feel so much better and you know, all of that stuff.

Caitlin Whyte: Yeah. Well, doctor, is there anything else you'd like us to know about this NaPro technology?

Tina Reichley, MD: I think the biggest thing is that, you know, NaPro technology has many adaptations outside infertility as a medical consultant, which I am, you know, we dive deep into the causes. It really forces us to be more diligent in pursuing a more thorough assessment and finding the root cause of symptoms. You know, we have more in our toolbox than just birth control. So then we can grab this knowledge and really, I think help in the long run women that are suffering from health-related problems to give them a better diagnosis and a better treatment plan, which then leads to kind of healthier individuals in the long run.

Caitlin Whyte: Wonderful. Well, we appreciate your time today and telling us all about this new technology. You can call seven (765) 935-8862 to schedule your appointment. That's (765) 935-8862. Or visit us online at reidhealth.org to learn more.

Don't forget to subscribe, rate and review this podcast and all of the other Reid Health podcasts. That concludes this episode of Right Beside You, a Reid Health podcast. I'm Caitlin Whyte. Stay well.