[chester5]

DH and I are almost to the point where we will be waiting for a referral. Yeah! We've been discussing whether or not to do the Pre-Adoption Medical Evaluation. I think it's a good idea, he feels it might not be so necessary. We live in a small, rural area, and our family doctor, although awesome, has no experience with babies outside the U.S.

What are the pros/cons? Any information you can give me would be appreciated. I'm going to print out your responses and share them with DH so we can made a decision.

Thank you!!!

[DD Amasa]

I didn't get a medical evaluation. There just wasn't enough information. Unless your referall is a few months old and you get medicals showing his/her progress over the months to plot. My son was two days old and all I got was date of birth, length, weight, head circumference and four pictures and an HIV negative report. He was six pounds so not low birth weight, I checked his length, weight and head circumference on a chart to make sure they seemed proportional myself. The medical report with the referall said he was healthy and normal.

I did send his records to an AI specialist four months later when I had four months of records to evaluate.

[redru2004]

My DH and I talked about this as well and decided only if something looked really off would we have someone here take a look. Guatemalan children tend to be quite a bit smaller than US children so we were prepared for that and part of the reason we chose to adopt from Guat was due to the wonderful medical care the children receive. When we got our son's referral he seemed very healthy, weighing in at 7.8lbs, 20 inches long and only 1 week old. They noted that his left pupil was much smaller than his right and that it was a concern but had an opthamologist take a look at it and they couldn't find anything wrong. We accepted the referral w/out hesitation, knowing if something happened later on we could deal with it. Since then Lucas has been to 2 other opthamologists for second and third opinions and the report has remained the same, they can't find anything wrong, however our agency does recommend we have a specialist see him when he's finally home, which of course we'll do. We just visited a few weeks ago and it put any fear I had to rest, Lucas follows things wth both eyes, has no problem reaching for things and grabbing them, etc. His eyes are extremely dark so the difference is very difficult to tell and the only way you can see it is if the sun hits it just right. I believe that the best thing you can do is research the norms for Guatemalan children and if you see something that isn't quite right then pull a specialist in IA in to take a look. GOOD LUCK!

[Larue]

Greetings - we consulted with an International Adoption (IA) Pediatrician. We provided him with the pictures and any medical information we received with our referral. He talked to us for about an hour, and the fee was $300. He has also reviewed subsequent pictures, medical reports and video footage we took during our visit trips, at no additional charge. We're first time parents, and if anything he has educated us and given us peace of mind.

I also met with Dr. Montiel, Sabrina's Pediatrician in Guatemala, during our first visit trip. Sabrina has a milk protein allergy, and has had issues with gaining weight and is on a special hypoallergenic formula. I have also discussed her allergy with our IA Pediatrician. I figure the more people monitoring her the better. Feel free to PM if you'd like his contact information.

Best wishes in your adoption journey!

[DoraDora]

We consulted an IA doctor at the time of our referral and, like Larue, we have continued to get feedback from them about each of our monthly medical updates (at no additional charge). We've had a couple of health concerns and found it very useful to have an already-established relationship.

As for being in a rural area, our IA doctor is on the other side of the country. We communicate by phone and email. They are very, very responsive. For us, it's just comforting to know they are there when and if we need them.

[DPline]

We did not consult an IA doctor for either of our children. Just our personal choice. They were 2.5 months and 11 months at referral.

Good luck! Hope you have your referral soon!

[cmfayz]

We did not consult a specialist for either referral - the 1st one was 9 days old and the 2nd 3 weeks old. I think had the babies been older, we may have considered it. But like the others have said, with a newborn there is very little information to evaluate. If it would give you peace of mind, then I say do it.

[Rhody]

My husband and I did use an international adoption clinic for a pre-review (and also used them for post adoption review when we came home.)
It gave us some peace of mind, although I agree with what others have said that the info you receive, or at last that we received, was minimal at referral. But they were still able to determine some things, like that he didn't have fetal alcohol syndrome, etc.
Our son was small at birth, so they monitored that and let us know how he was growing each month. They also gave us advice on what questions to ask his foster mother and doctor about his development...We're first time parents so it helped. They were also available to us for medical advice when we traveled to Guatemala, which was another nice peace of mind thing.
When we visited them on returning home, they knew him already, and really were great laying to rest any fears we had about attachment, development, medical issues, etc. The home visit was covered most by insurane, the pre-review stuff was all out pocket and cost about $400.

[pjkay720]

We did not consult an IA specialist either. Just like someone else mentioned we didn't have much information. I went on my gut feeling. My son is almost 2.5 years old and healthy as can be. He progressed nicely and has reached every milestone. I had thought about consulting the specialist, but my husband was against it. We have a biological child who was born premature and has special needs. My husband felt you don't get a choice when you give birth. That was just how he felt and his opinion.

[beachykeen]

We are going to send our information to MUSC (Medical University of South Carolina). They have an International Adoption Clinic. You can fax or email your information to them and they will review what you have. If you want more info, PM me!

[KKR213]

I didn't consult with a doctor either. My referral info was a letter stating he was disease free and listed his weight, height and head cc. There were 3 pictures but his eyes were closed in all but one and he was wrapped in a blanket.

[chester5]

Thank you for all of your posts. I appreciate all of your feedback and am finding it very helpful. We would be using the International Adoption Clinic in Minneapolis if we decide to go this route, but I appreciate your recommendations of other clinics. Have a blessed holiday season, everyone!