Sherman Silber
Encyclopedia
Sherman J. Silber is a pioneer in the field of infertility
. He invented many of the infertility treatments in use today, and is considered a foremost authority on IVF, sperm retrieval, ICSI
, vasectomy
reversal, tubal ligation
reversal, egg and embryo
freezing, ovary
transplantation, and the reproductive biological clock. He performed the world's first ovary and testicle
transplants, created and popularized the microsurgical vasectomy reversal, and popularized ovarian tissue freezing to preserve female fertility. He was the first to research the genetic causes of infertility in men, and aided in the development of the TESE-ICSI technique for extracting sperm from men with low or nonexistent sperm counts. Additionally, Silber has studied fertility in animals and performed surgery on chimpanzee
s, South American bush dogs, horses, and other endangered species.
, and thereafter completed post-graduate training at both Stanford University
and University of Michigan.
. After leaving Alaska for a residency in urology at the University of Michigan, Silber became interested in microsurgical techniques for kidney transplantation. He took academic posts at the University of Melbourne Medical School in Australia
and then the University of California
Medical School in San Francisco, where he was able to apply his surgical skills to vasectomy reversal. Although vasectomies were not as popular at the time, his medical innovation made headline news, and Silber moved to St. Louis to start his own clinic.
Currently, Silber is medical director of the Infertility Center of St. Louis at St. Luke's Hospital in St. Louis, Missouri
, where he has used his expertise to treat patients from around the world. He is also a partner and practicing physician at New Hope Fertility Center in New York City
. Over his career, Silber has collaborated with medical research teams from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
, the University of Amsterdam, and the Kato Clinic in Tokyo
, and has published more than 200 scientific papers and 50 teaching videos.
, the Today Show, The Oprah Winfrey Show
, Gary Collins, Peter Jennings
’ ABC Nightly News, and Ted Koppel
’s Nightline. He has been a consultant numerous times on the Joan Rivers Show and ABC News, and has been a regular contributor many times on KMOX, WOR, and NPR radio. He was one of four physicians picked to be on the U.S. Congress Office of Technology Assessment study to help infertile couples in the United States.
Infertility
Infertility primarily refers to the biological inability of a person to contribute to conception. Infertility may also refer to the state of a woman who is unable to carry a pregnancy to full term...
. He invented many of the infertility treatments in use today, and is considered a foremost authority on IVF, sperm retrieval, ICSI
ICSI
The abbreviation ICSI may refer to:* Intracytoplasmic sperm injection, a medical technique used in assisted reproduction* International Computer Science Institute, a non-profit research lab in Berkeley, California...
, vasectomy
Vasectomy
Vasectomy is a surgical procedure for male sterilization and/or permanent birth control. During the procedure, the vasa deferentia of a man are severed, and then tied/sealed in a manner such to prevent sperm from entering into the seminal stream...
reversal, tubal ligation
Tubal ligation
Tubal ligation or tubectomy is a surgical procedure for sterilization in which a woman's fallopian tubes are clamped and blocked, or severed and sealed, either method of which prevents eggs from reaching the uterus for fertilization...
reversal, egg and embryo
Embryo
An embryo is a multicellular diploid eukaryote in its earliest stage of development, from the time of first cell division until birth, hatching, or germination...
freezing, ovary
Ovary
The ovary is an ovum-producing reproductive organ, often found in pairs as part of the vertebrate female reproductive system. Ovaries in anatomically female individuals are analogous to testes in anatomically male individuals, in that they are both gonads and endocrine glands.-Human anatomy:Ovaries...
transplantation, and the reproductive biological clock. He performed the world's first ovary and testicle
Testicle
The testicle is the male gonad in animals. Like the ovaries to which they are homologous, testes are components of both the reproductive system and the endocrine system...
transplants, created and popularized the microsurgical vasectomy reversal, and popularized ovarian tissue freezing to preserve female fertility. He was the first to research the genetic causes of infertility in men, and aided in the development of the TESE-ICSI technique for extracting sperm from men with low or nonexistent sperm counts. Additionally, Silber has studied fertility in animals and performed surgery on chimpanzee
Chimpanzee
Chimpanzee, sometimes colloquially chimp, is the common name for the two extant species of ape in the genus Pan. The Congo River forms the boundary between the native habitat of the two species:...
s, South American bush dogs, horses, and other endangered species.
Education
Silber attended medical school at the University of MichiganUniversity of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
, and thereafter completed post-graduate training at both Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
and University of Michigan.
Career
After graduating from medical school, Silber interned as a urologist for the U.S. Public Health Service in AlaskaAlaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
. After leaving Alaska for a residency in urology at the University of Michigan, Silber became interested in microsurgical techniques for kidney transplantation. He took academic posts at the University of Melbourne Medical School in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and then the University of California
University of California
The University of California is a public university system in the U.S. state of California. Under the California Master Plan for Higher Education, the University of California is a part of the state's three-tier public higher education system, which also includes the California State University...
Medical School in San Francisco, where he was able to apply his surgical skills to vasectomy reversal. Although vasectomies were not as popular at the time, his medical innovation made headline news, and Silber moved to St. Louis to start his own clinic.
Currently, Silber is medical director of the Infertility Center of St. Louis at St. Luke's Hospital in St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
, where he has used his expertise to treat patients from around the world. He is also a partner and practicing physician at New Hope Fertility Center in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. Over his career, Silber has collaborated with medical research teams from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
, the University of Amsterdam, and the Kato Clinic in Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
, and has published more than 200 scientific papers and 50 teaching videos.
Books
Silber has authored four medical textbooks and five best-sellers on infertility and reproduction, including the book How to Get Pregnant, which has been reprinted in several different languages.Media Appearances
He has appeared on the Donahue Show eight times since 1980, Good Morning AmericaGood Morning America
Good Morning America is an American morning news and talk show that is broadcast on the ABC television network; it debuted on November 3, 1975. The weekday program airs for two hours; a third hour aired between 2007 and 2008 exclusively on ABC News Now...
, the Today Show, The Oprah Winfrey Show
The Oprah Winfrey Show
The Oprah Winfrey Show is an American syndicated talk show hosted and produced by its namesake Oprah Winfrey. It ran nationally for 25 seasons beginning in 1986, before concluding in 2011. It is the highest-rated talk show in American television history....
, Gary Collins, Peter Jennings
Peter Jennings
Peter Charles Archibald Ewart Jennings, CM was a Canadian American journalist and news anchor. He was the sole anchor of ABC's World News Tonight from 1983 until his death in 2005 of complications from lung cancer...
’ ABC Nightly News, and Ted Koppel
Ted Koppel
Edward James "Ted" Koppel is an English-born American broadcast journalist, best known as the anchor for Nightline from the program's inception in 1980 until his retirement in late 2005. After leaving Nightline, Koppel worked as managing editor for the Discovery Channel before resigning in 2008...
’s Nightline. He has been a consultant numerous times on the Joan Rivers Show and ABC News, and has been a regular contributor many times on KMOX, WOR, and NPR radio. He was one of four physicians picked to be on the U.S. Congress Office of Technology Assessment study to help infertile couples in the United States.