"I have been a fertility specialist in New York City for 16 years. As a physician who has had varied and international life experiences, I've developed a welcoming open-mindedness, a keen understanding of patient needs and a non-judgmental mentality."

Italian by birth, Dr. Vidali had an international upbringing having been raised between Italy and the United States. His academic credentials are stellar: he attended the prestigious Stuyvesant High School in New York City and one of the best Italian high schools, The Liceo. He then completed his medical degree at age 23 at the University of Padova in Italy, which is a premier Italian university, founded in 1222.

"Having attended medical school at the University of Padova was inspiring. I absolutely loved frequenting the old historic buildings such as the anatomy theater which was built in the 1500's and is one of the oldest, most important and best-known historic 'medical' buildings. The anatomy theater at the University is a symbol of the 16th century, the century which, thanks to anatomy, saw medicine break off from the thousand-year-old Galenic conception of healing, and enter the modern era of medical care."

Dr. Vidali completed medical school one year early and decided to dedicate two years to basic medical research, at which time he entered a postdoctoral research fellowship in Molecular Biology at the National Cancer Institute in Italy.

"My father, Giorgio Vidali, was a brilliant scientist and molecular biologist at Rockefeller University in New York. Thinking about following my father's steps I decided to enter a postdoctoral research fellowship in molecular biology at the NCI in Italy. During those years I was engaged in breakthrough research on oncogenes: genes that have the potential to cause cancer. This was incredibly interesting research, but the call of clinical medicine called me from the laboratory bench after 2 years."

Dr. Vidali left his postdoctoral fellowship in Molecular Biology and entered the residency program in Obstetrics and Gynecology at the historic Georgetown University Hospital in Washington, D.C. At that time Ob/Gyn Residents at Georgetown also served as healthcare providers at D.C. General Hospital, which was the City's first and only public hospital. D.C. General was known for providing critical care to the embattled inner-city populations at the height of the crack-cocaine epidemic of the 80's and 90's.

"Georgetown is a phenomenal University, and I enjoyed its wonderful traditions and history. On other side of town, D. C. General hospital felt like an island in the middle of a war zone. This experience was both nurturing and challenging, and it surely helped season me to the medical adversity present in inner cities."

After completing his residency at Georgetown Dr. Vidali chose to continue his studies with a fellowship in reproductive endocrinology at Columbia University. The first IVF baby was born in Norfolk, Virginia in 1981. This was an amazing event that rattled the world; however, at the beginning progress was slow: methodologies were being optimized. The true explosion of this new and exciting field of medicine happened in the early 90's.

"I always thought that I would be a cancer physician because I felt great pride in performing a good surgery, and much of my bench research was dedicated to cancer, but I was fascinated by the new and exciting discoveries in medicine related to infertility."

The college of Physician and Surgeons at Columbia University was one of the institutions where the field of Infertility saw its first light. In fact the first IVF human embryos had been created there in 1978 but never implanted. This first IVF story is that of Dolores Del Zio. Dolores Del Zio volunteered to become the first IVF patient ever, and had her eggs retrieved via open surgery at Cornell Hospital. A doctor took the eggs by car to Columbia on 168th street and the genius embryologist Landrum Shettles fertilized the eggs. Upon discovering what was going on, the chairman of the department, Dr. Wande Wiele, got scared and went into the lab and (the story goes) threw the embryos out of the window of the university. A huge public lawsuit ensued, and Columbia missed the an opportunity: a few months later the first IVF was performed in Great Britain by Professor Robert Edwards, who was later awarded the Nobel prize for his work.

"I heard the story of the first IVF and Dolores Del Zio from Dr. Nabil Husami at Columbia. Dr. Husami was a fellow at the time those events occurred. I immediately was drawn by Dr. Husami's amazing intelligence and larger than life personality, and knew that I wanted to work with him. Without doubt Dr. Husami was one of the best doctors I have ever met in my life."

Dr. Vidali and Dr. Husami soon joined forces and started a new IVF center called "American Fertility Services". The center became one of the leading IVF centers in New York City. Dr. Vidali subsequently left Columbia to become the Director of the Division of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility at St. Vincent's Medical Center in New York. At Saint Vincent's Dr. Vidali developed a division of Advanced Laparoscopic Surgery in collaboration with laparoscopy pioneer, Dr. Harry Reich.

At that time Dr. Vidali carried out important research both in the surgical and IVF fields. In 1998 Dr. Vidali published one of the earliest reports of egg freezing for fertility. In the same year Dr. Vidali also published one of the earliest papers on laparoscopic myomectomy for fertility patients. At that time the standard of care was to perform a very invasive open surgery for all patients undergoing fibroid removal. After the publication of that sentinel paper, the current started to turn, and today laparoscopic myomectomy is the new standard of care.

"The years at Saint Vincent's were exciting years where I had the opportunity to work with amazing physicians like Harry Reich, John Koulos and Jeffrey King. It is very sad that such a beautiful, historic institution like St. Vincent's has now been converted into luxury apartments".

After Saint Vincent's Dr. Vidali started collaborating with Dr. Manny Alvarez, the famous Perinatologist and television personality. At Dr. Manny's request and urging, Dr. Vidali accepted a position as the Director of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility at Hackensack University Hospital.

"Hackensack Hospital is one of the best run hospitals in which I have ever worked. In terms of its organization and patient friendly atmosphere, it puts every other hospital I have ever worked in to shame."

American Fertility Services suffered a major blow when Dr. Husami discovered that he had an advanced case of pancreatic cancer in 2009 and after his passing, Dr. Vidali decided to close all the American Fertility satellites and focus his energies on the New York City based office.

"The loss of Nabil was one of the most devastating events of my entire life. Nabil was not only a business partner: he was like an older brother to me."

After the passing of his beloved colleague Dr. Nabil Husami, Dr. Vidali sold his interest in American Fertility Services and took a short break from owning his own practice.

"Most fertility centers have now become mega clinics. These are corporate environments that are dehumanizing not only for the patients but also for the physicians who work in those types of settings."

Dr. Vidali has decided to make a drastic change in the way he practices medicine, by choosing a more personable environment in which to work. Over the years Dr. Vidali had been working and collaborating with a wonderful physician, Dr. Galina Karpenko.

"Galina is the perfect combination of a brilliant mind, a charming personality and great medical skills."

In 2012 Dr. Vidali and Dr. Karpenko have decided to join forces and to create a new fertility practice that is friendlier and more patient focused.

"Some have argued that emotional suffering from infertility equates in magnitude to that of cancer and I happen to agree with this. In the end, stress is the greatest enemy of health. If you are in a less stressful environment, then you are more likely to succeed in your quest of having a baby!"

To find out more about New York Reproductive's comprehensive fertility services and infertility treatment options available at our NYC fertility clinic, or to schedule an appointment with Dr. Vidali, call (212) 317-8700 or use our online appointment form.