What is an REI?

REI is not just a sports store, but it stands for Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility and doctors who work in this area are REI specialists. Sometimes we may refer to ourselves as reproductive endocrinologists.

It is important to check that your doctor is board certified or at least board eligible. In the U.S. the certifying board is the American Board of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ABOG). This group rigorously evaluates doctors with both written tests and in person questioning and reviews the types of patients they have treated (anonymously) to make sure they have the breadth and depth of exposure and knowledge. 

In the U.S., all board-certified doctors have completed an undergraduate degree and 4 years of medical school. A board-certified general Ob/Gyn has had 4 years of residency training and passed one written test and one in-person "oral" test to ascertain how well they can treat pregnant people and people with gynecologic issues. 

BUT an REI has an EXTRA THREE YEARS of training just to focus on reproductive issues and hormonal issues that affect the reproductive tract and how to manage them. We pass yet another set of written and oral tests. We all have done intense research to contribute to the field. There are only around 1300 of us REIs in the U.S. 

I like to think that board certification not only signifies our commitment and experience in the field but as people that have contributed to research in the field, we know how to read the literature about what is the latest and greatest to make sure the services we offer are safe and EFFECTIVE. Not every "research study" that can be found on Google was done properly or means that it will work for you, but let’s save that for another post :)