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Couple suing IVF clinic for implanting male embryo

By Jo Abi|

A couple in the US is suing their IVF clinic for implanting a male embryo instead of a female one.

Heather Wilhelm-Routenberg and Robin Routenberg-Wilhelm knew they wanted to become parents, but tells The Telegraph UK they were only willing to parent a girl due to Robin's alleged past sexual assault experiences with men.

They visited the CNY fertility clinic in Latham and say were assured they could choose the sex of their baby.

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IVF couple suing clinic male baby
Heather Wilhelm-Routenberg and Robin Routenberg-Wilhelm had asked for a female embryo to be implanted. (Facebook)

Initially Robbie was implanted with an embryo created with an egg from Heather and sperm from a donor but miscarried. That embryo had been confirmed to be a girl.

So they then had an embryo was created using an egg for Robbie and a sperm donor, and it was implanted into Heather and this time the pregnancy was successful.

It was at the 15-week scan that the couple were told they were going to have a male child.

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IVF procedure
The couple were told they were expecting a male child at the 15-week scan. (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

Heather says their "jaws dropped to the floor" adding that she was "convinced it had to be someone else's result".

"I felt my body was taken hostage. I assumed it was someone else's embryo, not the wrong embryo of ours," she adds.

She tells New York Post it took seven weeks to confirm the embryo was genetically theirs and not the result of a mix up.

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"After we found out I was carrying a boy, the internal investigation to determine whose embryo it was took seven weeks," Heather explains. "I was convinced the whole time it wasn't ours because the clinic knew not to transfer a male: It wasn't a preference, it was a need."

"I felt my body was taken hostage."

They decided not to get an abortion, but Heather says she struggled mentally with the news and began experiencing flash backs to the sexual assault.

"At about 27 weeks pregnant, I started bleeding and was rushed to the emergency room," Heather explain. "I had a placental abruption, which I later found happens to someone who has suffered physical trauma or stress."

In December 2020 the couple welcomed their son but Heather admits she struggled to bond with him and began experiencing "extreme anxiety" and post-partum depression.

The couple are now suing CNY Fertility on 11 counts including breach of contract, medical malpractice and battery.

Blue IVF
Heather says she is struggling to understand how a mistake like this could have been made. (Getty)

While Heather says she doesn't want to appear "ungrateful" for her son, she is distressed the clinic could make such a mistake.

"I was so furious," Heather tells NY Post. "It felt like a deep betrayal. How the f--k do you mess up that bad? They messed up something so integral; the fact that there are no legal requirements about these procedures should strike fear in the hearts of all parents using fertility services."

She says their son, now 18-months-old, is a "lovely kid" and "smiles just like Robbie" which has made it easier for her to form a connection with him.

"I think we connect on our similarities: He's a very compassionate kid," she explains. "I used to bring him into the garden when he was in my belly and tell him what I was planting, and now we both love trees and both love dogs.

"I feel like I know him and how he's feeling. When it's just us, it's amazing! but when we're out in the world, he's a symbol of something, being socialised as the same people who did bad stuff to me."

CNY Fertility has been contacted for comment.

If you or someone you know is in need of support contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Gidget Foundation on 1300 851 758.

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