Dr. Turek Reviews

I decided to find the best doctor in the area

I have been married for 4 years. Two years ago I and my wife started trying to conceive, but it wasn't happening. After a year of unsuccessful tries we decided to look for help. We visited our primary care physician Dr. Alla Boykoff who recommended that both of us should undergo different tests to determine where the problem was.
I was taken by complete surprise to find out that my sperm count was very low - insufficient to conceive under normal conditions (the traditional way).

On the other side the good news was that my wife was completely fine. It was determined that the problem was with my low sperm count.

My primary care physician referred me to Dr. Ira Sharlip who was in my network (Aetna HMO). I went to see doctor Sharlip and after a 30 minutes wait I was invited to his office. He actually let his assistant examine me. She determined that I had Varicocele. Dr Sharlip told me that I may consider surgery, but that the chances of improvement are not high. He sounded like this surgery will probably not resolve the problem. Considering his opinion my primary care physician recommended that we visit Pacific Fertility Center and ask them for help. So we did. After a lot of blood tests my wife had her first IUI - this was our first attempt to conceive using this method. It was not successful. So were the next two we did. Our doctor at Pacific Fertility center recommended my wife to start a hormone therapy and increase the IUI attempts to 2 per month. At that point last summer we decided to continue with the second set of IUI's after we come back from vacation.

While on vacation in Bulgaria (my home country) I decided to go see a specialist (urologist) and ask for second opinion. The doctor confirmed Dr. Sharlip's diagnosis. However, he insisted that I performed the surgery to treat the Varicocele. He was convinced that after the surgery my sperm count will significantly improve and with the help of Chlomid it will be boosted to even higher levels. He said that I need to make sure that I do everything to fix the problem and only if unsuccessful move to artificial insemination.

Since I live in San Francisco, I decided to find the best doctor in the area who can perform the surgery. I found that Dr. Paul Turek specializes in infertility issues in men and has his own clinic. All his reviews were great. I called his office and scheduled an appointment. I was met promptly by the doctor and we had a 40 min conversation. I was able to discuss my problem in great detail. Dr. Turek listened carefully and then examined me. He also confirmed the Varicocele and recommended a surgery. He also convinced me by showing me several scientific papers that he had published with actual data on the success rate of improving semen analysis and most importantly successful pregnancies after undergoing such surgery. From the data it was evident that I should expect my wife to become pregnant 6-8 months after the surgery.
So I was determined and convinced to have this surgery. What also helped was that my new PPO insurance with Aetna was covering it (unlike the expensive IUI and IVF procedures at the Pacific Fertility Center).

I had the surgery this past October. It lasted only couple hours and by lunch time I was on my way home.
In January 2011 I visited Dr. Turek's office for sperm analysis and examination. My sperm count had improved significantly. This gave me great hope that the surgery might have fixed the problem.

And now to the great news: two months later just before my next appointment with Dr. Turek my wife found out that she was pregnant. I was so happy. She is currently in her 9-th week and we both hope that everything will go well in the future.

I can't explain how thankful I am to Dr. Turek. He was absolutely right that after the surgery we will not need to visit Pacific Fertility Center anymore. I recommend to all men with a problem like mine to consider this treatment. It probably will save you a lot of suffering and expenses.

–Dimitar F.     San Francisco, CA, March 21, 2011

May 25, 2016

Dr Turek – ‘The Miracle Worker!’

My wife and I are thrilled to share with you that we just welcomed our first baby boy! "Cole" was born on February 28th, 2012 weighing 8lbs 13oz and measuring 21.5 inches long. Both mommy and baby are doing great.

Dr. Turek is an 'angel' from God that performed a miracle for me and my growing family. A brief history: I went through a divorce 4 years ago that left me with two beautiful boys, and a vasectomy. Shortly afterwards, I met the love of my life. After dating for 11 months we got engaged and decided that we wanted children of our own so I called up my urologist (the same one that performed the vasectomy) and scheduled the surgery to have everything undone.

He assured me that he has done this type of surgery before with enough success to have me commit to moving forward with him (you would think the one that closed it up could open it back up....I was so wrong)! The surgery was very painful, a lot of bruising and I had a huge hematoma that stretched from the top of my right hip bone down to the bottom of my buttocks. The recovery lasted two full weeks, I couldn't get off the couch for the first week because the pain and swelling was so horrendous. But I kept saying to myself that it will all be worth it if I can get viable sperm again. Needless to say, the surgery was unsuccessful and left me with residual amounts of pain, scaring, and a $7,500 bill to pay.

My fiancé and I were very disappointed and desperate to have the procedure done correctly. I went back to my doctor and expressed my deep concern of the outcome of the surgery and the only thing that he could recommend is that I should consult with Dr. Turek in San Fransico. Dr Turek specializes in fixing vasectomies that didn't take the first time. He's world renown, and has an impressive track record of successful outcomes. I just wish he would have referred me from the start vs trying to perform it himself and leaving me nothing to show for it but a lot of pain. So I took his advice and immediatly went on theturekclinic website. I was very impressed and immediately scheduled a consultation with Dr. Turek. I told him my story: 4 year old vasectomy, with an 8 month old failed vasectomy reversal. Dr Turek said, "This is my area of expertise I like challenges so lets see what we can do." And after going over his success rates it was clear that he is the one that should have been doing this procedure from the very start.

I had the surgery performed in January 2011, was married June 4th, 2011 and we had our first baby February 28th, 2012. What an amazing blessing to be celebrating our first wedding anniversary 'with' our beautiful baby boy!

There are three things that make Dr Turek the leader in this type of procedure:
1. Pain management- It's amazing when the surgery is done correctly the first time how much 'less' pain medicine is needed and how the recovery was expedited (I had very little swelling and only had to use the pain medicine for two days).  2. After care is unparalleled. Dr. Turek is there from surgery all the way up to conception and his staff are amazing. Constant support and communication through: office visits, email and phone calls.  3. Positivity!Dr Turek's clinic gave my wife and I a feeling of hope and optimism from day one.

We feel so blessed to have Dr. Turek in our lives and its amazing to think how gifted his talents are to bring life to parents when at one time there was no hope. He is our angel!

—Mike J.     Wake Forest, NC, March 8, 2012

May 25, 2016

A Baby Boy

PS ---- We just had another baby, a boy that was born on August 24th. Go Dr. Turek. :)

—Cadi V.     San Rafael, CA, Sept 20, 2012

May 25, 2016

Five stars are not enough

5 stars are not enough for Dr. Turek. I met my dream man 3 years ago. The only thing was that he had a vasectomy and unable to have any more children. He told me that he would reverse it or do whatever it takes. I went to a nameless obgyn in greenbrae two years ago. I asked about my fertility. The doctor told me to decide if I wanted a baby or my fiance. I was crushed. I asked about reversals etc. He told me to make a choice but I could not have both. I went home and cried and cried. We still researched Dr's online but had little hope. I asked for a brochure from Dr. Turek but I felt hopeless. Then, Paula called me and followed up! We made an appointment to see Dr. Turek. I told him that my Ob told me to leave my fiance and that everyone said i was getting too old for a baby. Dr Turek looked at our facts and told us that we had 95% chance of having a baby. He said we were still young in our 30's and the vasectomy had only been in place for 3 years. We had the surgery and he said it was text book!!!! Then, the real news came, my fiance went and got his results he had one of the highest sperm counts Dr. Turek has ever seen and got an A+! Now, that is quite a ways a way from me not being able to have my dream man and dream baby. We have been pregnant twice since the surgery. Once ended in miscarriage but I am now 34 weeks along and will have our miracle baby girl by Jan 2011. We got pregnant twice and the surgery was only in July 2009 that is pretty freakin impressive. I know my fiance would say it was his A+ sperm but we give Dr. Turek an A+ for giving us our miracle baby girl and giving us hope. His confidence is well deserved and makes you feel that you can do it.

May 25, 2016

Worth it

I can't imagine a vasectomy procedure going more smoothly. In the initial visit he explained how he performs the operation and showed me statistics about complications and potential side effects. The actual procedure took about 15min. Dental cleanings are far more annoying and painful. Quite pricey but worth it

—Will C San Leandro, CA  Dec. 5, 2012

May 25, 2016

An excellent resource.

Extremely knowledgeable.  Great bedside manner.  An excellent resource.   Highly recommended.

— Uri L.     San Francisco, CA, December 16, 2009

May 25, 2016

‘If Your Problem is Male Factor, Deal With Dr. Turek First’

After trying to conceive for a year, my husband was diagnosed with low sperm count and motility. We visited Dr. Turek who diagnosed him with a varicocele and recommended surgery to fix it. We decided to get a second opinion and went to see a reproductive endocrinologist who advised against the surgery and said that we should try some fertility treatments. After spending $10,000 with her on failed IUIs and medicated IUI treatment and throwing hormones at me, she said that our only hope was IVF. We went for another opinion from another RE who said that IVF was our only hope and that the surgery would make things worse. We went for another opinion from another RE who said the same thing, that IVF was our only option and we should not do varicocele surgery, it was a waste of time and money. Well, F**k those REs, we went ahead and did the surgery because it was in the $6,000 range and IVF was in the $25,000-$32,000 range. No way we could afford to have a kid after spending all that money on IVF. So, we tried the surgery. It went smoothly. My husband and I love Dr. Turek, he's got a great bedside manner, and what do you know, after 6 1/2 months, I became pregnant without any stupid fertility treatments. So screw you RE's. If your problem is male factor, deal with Dr. Turek first. He really wants to get you pregnant.

—Laney B., San Francisco, June 6, 2011

Read the prior review

May 25, 2016

‘After Suffering For So Long, We Are No Longer an Infertile Couple’

I wanted to update to say that my husband and I have a second new baby. This time on our first try. This is all due to Dr. Turek. Had we listened to the RE's we would have had to go through 2 IVFs (at least) but these were both spontaneous pregnancies. The first was 6 1/2 months after my husband's surgery and the second was 18 months after his surgery. As I said in my previous review, 3 different (highly esteemed) Bay Area fertility specialists told us not to the do the surgery and that it would never work, that we'd only get pregnant with their help. After several fruitless IUIs and doses of clomid, injectables, etc, we listened to Dr. Turek's advice and decided to fix the only known variable. After suffering for so long, we are no longer an infertile couple. He actually cured our problem. How many doctors are actually able to do that? To get to the root of a problem and fix it? I can't recommend Dr. T highly enough. Please go to him if you have any inkling that your fertility issues might be male factor. He will get to the root of your problem before throwing a 25k "only option" at you.

—Laney B., San Francisco, August 10, 2011

May 25, 2016

‘He Gave Us Hope For Having a Biological Child After We Had Been Told It Was Impossible’

Dr. Turek is an incredibly caring doctor, an excellent surgeon, and one of the few top male factor infertility specialists in the country. My husband saw him for severe male factor infertility, and he gave us hope for having a biological child after we had been told it was impossible. Unfortunately, there is no IVF clinic in San Francisco that is equivalent to his skill level (and the clinic he referred us to, PFC, which is in the same building as him is a grade B clinic at best). But that said, for male factor issues, I don't think there is a better doctor.

—MB, San Diego, CA, July 10, 2013

May 25, 2016

‘You Can Think of Excuses Not To See Dr. Turek, But I Hope You Take My Advice’

Apprehension, fear, cost, worry, stress ... You can think of many excuses not to see Dr. Turek, but I hope you take my advice and make an appointment. It's one of the most worthwhile experiences of my life.

His office is surprisingly easy to get to and his staff is professional, courteous and kind. They could sense that I was really struggling with coming in for my appointment and made the process very comfortable and reassuring.

Dr. Turek himself could not be more professional and friendly. Upon meeting him, I immediately felt relieved and knew I had made the right choice. He took time to effectively examine, instruct and listen to me to get to the root cause of my health issues. Moreover, he addressed steps I should take to better my overall health and state of mind. I am happy to say that there were no gimmicks or hidden fees whatsoever. If you can believe it, this was genuine, ol'-fashioned, down-home doctorin' in the heart of Beverly Hills! I could not believe the level of care and value, it was truly a bargain. I left his office reassured, and with a spring in my step — he literally changed my outlook on life. My only regret is that I did not see him sooner. I cannot recommend him more highly.

—Andrew A., Los Angeles, May 7, 2014

May 25, 2016