Having a child is a wonderful experience for both a man and a woman. Both share in the up’s and downs of the pregnancy. But what happens if one or both partners are unable to have a child? Infertility is a common problem and it does cause a lot of stress and anxiety. Some people have to find infertility help. It is important to understand what infertility is and what kind of help is available. When you have the answers to the questions then you can make a more informed choice. In this article we will discuss some of the questions that may arise when you are considering pregnancy but are facing fertility problems.

What is infertility?

Infertility is defined by the medical community as actively trying to get pregnant for over a year and either not being able to become pregnant or having miscarriages frequently. It is a problem that affects millions of couples and can be either on the male’s part or the female’s part. There is infertility help for people trying to have a baby though and that is important to keep in mind.

I want to reverse my tubal ligation. What type of infertility help is there for this procedure?

There are infertility help specialists who can reverse a tubal ligation. You do have to be aware that the chances of conceiving and carrying the child are significantly reduced depending on the type of tubal ligation that was performed. If the tubes were simply tied then there is a greater length of tube for the specialists to reconnect. If the tubes were cut and then tied there is a shorter length of tube for the specialists to work with. This reduces the chance of being able to naturally conceive.

Where can I go online for infertility help?

Thanks to the internet there are a great many infertility help groups and organizations to be found online. You can check out www.mayoclinic.com to find reasons for infertility. You can also join groups on Yahoo that can suggest treatment options that you may not have heard of or considered yet. WebMD is another website you can check out for infertility help.

I am young and do not want to have a family at this point but I am afraid that later I may face infertility. What steps can I take now that can improve my chances of fertility later?

Infertility help specialists would advise that you take good care of your body. You may not want to have a baby at a young age but that may change later. If you continue to eat a diet rich in folic acid and in Omega-3 fatty acids, you keep your body healthier. You should also consider not smoking. If you have a family history of infertility you may want to store your eggs cryogenically for the future. That way if you find that you are not able to conceive later in life, you do have viable eggs stored.

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The Centers for Disease Control estimates that infertility in women affects 7.3 million individuals between the ages of 15 and 44. Naturally, age is a big risk factor for becoming infertile, as the chance of becoming pregnant in any given month decreases from 30% to 10% after age 40. However, additional female infertility risk factors may include having multiple sexual partners (which increases the risk of STDs), a history of pelvic inflammatory disease, having an eating disorder, being diagnosed with endometriosis or suffering from a chronic long-term condition like diabetes. Infertility in men is just as possible, with the risk increasing due to previous STDs, mumps, a history of orchitis or epididymitis or varicocele. This article focuses, specifically, on health issues and reasons for infertility in woman.

The most common cause of female infertility, which is prevalent in about 30% of all cases, is ovulation disorders. Fortunately, 70% of these female infertility cases can be treated successfully using drugs like clomiphene and Repronex. There are several different reasons why a woman may not be ovulating normally, including hormonal problems, scarred ovaries, premature menopause and follicle problems. Most commonly, a woman has difficulty producing mature eggs due to poly-cystic ovary syndrome, where heightened levels of LH, oestrogen and testosterone suppresses the development of ovarian follicles, instead causing follicular cysts to develop. Since this condition increases the risk of breast cancer, it’s especially important that this condition be treated, regardless of infertility problems.

Another 25% of infertility in women occurs as the result of poorly functioning fallopian tubes. The causes of female infertility may range from mild abrasions to complete tubal blockage. Women are treated with surgery, usually laparoscopic, laser or micro-surgery, which minimizes invasiveness and risk. Success rates range from 30 – 65%, depending on the damage and the infertility procedure performed. Reasons for infertility related to tube failure include: infection caused by bacteria and viruses (most notably STDs), abdominal diseases (like appendicitis or colitis, which can cause scarring on the fallopian tubes), previous surgeries, ectopic pregnancy (pregnancy occurring in the fallopian tubes themselves), or (in rare cases) congenital uterus irregularities. Other factors of female infertility include endometriosis or lifestyle factors like exposure to toxins, alcohol, drugs, diet, exercise and polyps.

About 85-90% of infertile couples will receive a diagnosis following a series of medical tests. Treatment depends upon the precise factors of infertility in women and men, but it may include: education, counseling, medication to treat infection, medication to promote ovulation, surgery to repair damage to reproductive organs, cyst or polyp removal or In Vitro Fertilization. Appropriate therapy (not including in vitro fertilization) will result in a 50-60% success rate. Without taking any of the infertility options presented to them, 15-20% of diagnosed couples will go on to have a child anyway.

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While female infertility is a lot more common because the female reproductive system is so much more complex and so there are so many different things that could go wrong, couples have to realize if they are having problems conceiving that it could be the man. The only way you are going to be able to determine just who has the problem here is by having the woman take a female infertility test and the man will have to take a male infertility test.

Doctors usually like to give the man the test first and see if it is male infertility that they are dealing with, mainly because the tests for the man are much less invasive than those for the woman, and so if they don’t have to go through with the female infertility tests, all the better for everyone involved.

Then of course if the man’s tests come back as fine, they can pretty much assume that it is the woman who has the fertility problem.

Researching the causes of male infertility?

The big question that all men have when they find out that they are infertile is what was the male infertility cause in their situation, because they are curious to know if it was something they did that was the male infertility cause. The causes of infertility can differ from one man to other.

One of the most common male infertility causepossibilities it that it is genetic. If you are a man who has a low sperm count, your father could have dealt with the same thing. Doctors have proven that low sperm counts and abnormal sperm conditions run in families, so if you can you should talk to your father and see if he had any problems like this.

Male infertility can be caused due to injury. If a man has injured his penis or scrotum at any point of life then he can struggle with infertility.

Men do have to realize that just because they are infertile, this does not mean that they have absolutely no chance of ever getting a woman pregnant and having a child, it just means that they are probably not going to be able to do it the old-fashioned way and instead are most likely going to have to take advantage of modern technology and use infertility treatment.

The Common Causes for Infertility in Men

When a couple are facing problems with reproduction and conception, it’s very shortsighted and medically inaccurate to assume that it must always be the woman’s problem.  Infertility in men is the cause of reproductive issues in about half of the cases reported, so if you and your partner are having problems conceiving, you do well to investigate the common causes for infertility in men so as to handle these issues promptly and completely.  Here are the most common causes:

Low sperm count – the most common reason for infertility in men.

Yes, men typically have millions of sperm that they produce during each sexual encounter, however, these sperm are very fragile and very few actually survive the journey through a woman’s system to reach an egg to fertilize.  This is why it’s necessary to produce those millions!  But in reality, any one sperm reaching an egg to fertilize it is like winning the lottery – there are millions of tickets sold, but it’s unlikely that any one is the winner.  So, having a lower than normal sperm count makes it that much more difficult for conception to take place.  Since this is the most common reason for infertility in men, chances are that a doctor would want to take a sample of a man’s semen to test the sperm count before doing any other tests.

Low sperm motility.

To a human, the journey through a woman’s system to reach the egg dropped by the fallopian tubes is miniscule.  But to the tiny microscopic sperm, it may as well be miles long!  Any sperm that are not able to push themselves to get through that journey are going to die off before they make it, and again, sperm are very fragile to begin with.  Low sperm motility may not be the most common reason for infertility in men, but it is common enough that again, doctors will want to check the abilities of your “little swimmers” to make sure they can make it through their long journey.  If not, alternative means of conception may need to be explored.

Malformed sperm.

If the sperm are not formed properly, they will not be able to propel themselves along to make that arduous journey.  Malformed sperm is a common reason for infertility in men, and may also be one of the more common reasons for low sperm motility.  However, it’s important to remember that malformed sperm doesn’t mean that a child conceived with it is going to somehow be malformed or that this is a cause for birth defects; it simply means that again, there may need to be an alternative form of conception that is explored rather than relying on the natural course of action.

Blocked sperm ducts.

Many people mistakenly assume that every time a man ejaculates during sexual activity, that this contains sperm.  This is not necessarily true; only about 1-2% of a man’s semen is actually sperm.  Blocked sperm ducts are another common reason for infertility in men; he has no sperm at all in the ejaculate in these cases.

Fertility Treatment

Couples who are dealing with the problem of infertility can often think that they are very alone in their concerns.  Most believe that pregnancy is easy, and may look around at the other couples with their bouncing bundles of joy as proof positive of this fact.  They may also have many friends and family members who announce one day that they are planning on starting a family, and who are seemingly pregnant immediately after.

But believe it or not, infertility is much more common than you might think.  It’s estimated that about 1 in every 10 couples that are attempting to have a baby, have some type of problem with infertility.  Imagine ten other couples that you know who have children, and you can make a safe bet that at least one of them faced some difficulty when it came to conceiving.  And when you think about this on a national scale, 1 in 10 couples means 5 to 6 million couples in the U.S. every year have some difficulty getting pregnant.

But what exactly defines the concept of infertility?  Simply put, this is when a couple is having regular (twice per week on average) unprotected sex and are still not pregnant after a year of trying.

This may be surprising news to some couples, who often assume that a month or so of trying is all that’s needed to signal a problem with infertility.  Not so, say doctors.  Because of the many details that need to align perfectly for a woman to conceive, it can actually take that many times trying before there is any need for concern.

Obviously it’s true that there are some who have a much more difficult time with conception than others; and of course there are many factors that will contribute to this problem.  Some couples seem to be much more fertile than others, and this may very well be the case.  Some men simply have a higher sperm count than average, and of course the more sperm he had, the greater his chance of having one reach a woman’s egg to fertilize it.  Additionally, some women have problems with ovulation and do not release a healthy, viable egg every month, so there may need to be a few months worth of attempts in order for her to conceive.

But while infertility is something that is more common than you might think, it is also a very personal issue.  You should never make the mistake of comparing your abilities to conceive to anyone else’s, even those in your own family.  Again, you may know of a couple who seem to be able to get pregnant just by talking about it, while you and your partner have been trying for weeks and months, but this isn’t necessarily a cause for concern.  Everyone’s body is different, everyone’s reproductive abilities are different as well.  If you are really concerned about whether or not you will need medical intervention or another way of helping you with your supposed infertility, then be sure to speak to your doctor, as only he or she will be able to know for sure.

Fertility Treatment

Common Infertility Drugs and Their Usage

When a couple is dealing with the issues of reproductive challenges and possible infertility, there may be some simple measures they can take to increase their chances of conceiving.  For others, however, they may get a recommendation from their doctor that they begin a round of infertility drugs in order to help them along.  If this is the case, we have assembled some helpful information about the most common infertility drugs, typically prescribed to the woman, along with their usage.  Here is the rundown:

Bravelle Inj

This medication provides the hormone (FSH) that helps cause the ovaries to produce eggs.  This medication is usually used in combination with other infertility drugs, including a hormone (hCG) for the growth and release of a mature egg (ovulation).  This medication is not recommended for women whose ovaries no longer make eggs properly (primary ovarian failure).

Bromocriptine Oral

Bromocriptine is one of the infertility drugs used to treat hormonal problems caused by high levels of a certain chemical made by the body (prolactin).  Such problems include unwanted breast milk, missed/stopped periods, difficulty becoming pregnant, decreased sperm production, and decreased sexual ability.  Because of possible serious side effects (e.g., high blood pressure, seizure, heart attack, stroke), bromocriptine is not recommended for stopping unwanted breast milk after pregnancy, miscarriage, or abortion.  Note that this is true for all infertility drugs – they should be used for their intended purpose and nothing else.

Chorionic Gonadotropin IM

This medication is used in women to treat fertility problems.  It is given after finishing another other infertility drugs (menotropins) to cause the release of an egg (ovulation).  It should not be used in women whose ovaries no longer make eggs properly (primary ovarian failure).

Clomid Oral

This medication is used to treat infertility in women.  It works by stimulating an increase in the amount of hormones that support the growth and release of a mature egg (ovulation).  As with many infertility drugs, this medication is not recommended for women whose ovaries no longer make eggs properly (primary pituitary or ovarian failure).

Menopur SubQ

This medication provides follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) and luteinizing hormone (LH) that help healthy ovaries to make eggs.  This medication is usually used in combination with other infertility drugs, including another hormone (human chorionic gonadotropin-hCG) to help you become pregnant by bringing about the growth and release of a mature egg (ovulation).  This medication is not recommended for women whose ovaries no longer make eggs properly (primary ovarian failure).

As with all infertility drugs, be sure that you are in constant communication with your doctor about their dosage, storage, possible side effects, and of course the length of time for which you should take them.  Make sure that you are very clear on all the necessary information and don’t hesitate to speak up if you have questions or need further assistance in understanding these things – after all, infertility drugs are very strong medicines, and you will need to make the decision about whether or not they are the best course of treatment for you.

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How Successful is the Infertility Diet?

When dealing with the issue of infertility and difficulties with conception, most couples of course want to try anything and everything they can to help the process along.  With that thought in mind, some wonder if there is such a thing as an infertility diet, and if so, does it actually work?  Can your eating habits do anything to help or hinder your situation with pregnancy?  Let’s examine some of that information here.

Doctors Respond to the Infertility Diet

In a new study cited in OBGYN News, a group of Harvard researchers found that 79% of infertile couples had a lower-than-average intake of foods high in antioxidants – like fruits and vegetables.  In one study published in the Annals of the New York Academy of Medicine, doctors found that after one week of daily doses of 1,000 milligrams of vitamin C, sperm counts rose by some 140%.  Obviously, when dealing with infertility, diet and getting enough of the right vitamins is helpful to some.

More recently, a study published in the Archives of Andrology showed the antioxidants vitamin E and selenium improved the ability of sperm to swim – a skill necessary to reach the egg.

Physical Activity is Part of the Infertility Diet

Exercise also improves muscle tone and good muscle tone helps every aspect of your system as well.  Excessive body weight also puts undue pressure on the reproductive organs and doesn’t allow them to function optimally; obese persons often suffer from reproductive issues.  When dealing with infertility, diet alone may not be enough.  Regular physical activity must be part of the equation as well.

However, you don’t want to go overboard in this direction either.  It’s been sadly reported that many young female athletes that are pushed to excessive physical activity have irregular periods and subsequent issues with reproduction.  Starving your body of vital nutrients and overworking it physically will take a tremendous toll on your system, and this is true for both men and women.  So if you do exercise and keep track of your diet, make sure you’re being balanced and healthy.

But modest exercise is beneficial in so many ways, not just when discussing the infertility diet.  Exercising increases the blood circulation and good circulation is important for all aspects of health.  Blood brings nutrients to every part of the body and filters away dead cells.

Additionally, eating right and exercising will make a person feel better all around; feeling more positive will lead to a reduction in stress, which is also beneficial when trying to conceive.  And when thinking about your infertility diet, this may be something that helps to draw you together as a couple, which can lead to a better, more active sex life – another important aspect of conception!  So never dismiss the thought that your condition can be helped or hindered by your eating habits and exercising; even doctors agree that when dealing with infertility, diet is important, as is exercise and physical activity.

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Infertility is a lot more common than most people think.  Believe it or not, about 1 in 10 couples experiences problems with conception at some point in their attempts.  This may be with their first child, or they may actually have problems conceiving after they’ve already had a child.  Usually the issues they are facing can be pinpointed by a medical doctor, but sometimes not.  This is called unexplained infertility, when their doctors are at a loss to find a reason for why they are having problems conceiving.

When does it become unexplained infertility?

It would be shortsighted to assume that with your first few months of trying to having a baby that you’re infertile, or that the first time your doctor scratched his or her head in confusion that this means you have unexplained infertility.  Medically speaking, a couple are not considered truly infertile until after a year of regular (twice a week on average) unprotected sex has not resulted in a pregnancy.  A year may seem like a long time to someone who wants a baby, but considering all the many details that need to work in harmony for conception, it’s really no wonder that doctors give them this long.

Additionally, there are many common causes for infertility that your doctor will want to check first, such as a woman’s inability to ovulate at all or to ovulate a healthy egg, and a man’s low sperm count.  These are probably the first two things that your doctor will check, but if these tests are negative or inconclusive, it doesn’t mean that you have unexplained infertility.

When you get the diagnosis of unexplained infertility.

For some couples, however, they have been through every test that is available and everything has come back in their favor, and yet, still no pregnancy.  The man may have healthy, active sperm, and the woman may be ovulating a healthy egg regularly, but again, conception is just not happening for them.  This is when the doctors begin to use the phrase unexplained infertility.

For these couples, there is still no reason to abandon hope.  Medical intervention may be necessary, but is usually successful.  If the woman has a healthy uterus that can support a fetus, the doctor may recommend in vitro fertilization, where an egg is extracted from her and fertilized with the man’s sperm in a lab, and then planted in her uterus to grow.  By manipulating the man’s sperm and the woman’s egg in such a way, there is nothing left to chance.  In most cases, this procedure is safe and successful, albeit expensive.

And of course there are other options available for any couple going through unexplained infertility, so again, there is no need to give up hope.  Talk openly and honestly to your doctor about your concerns, and listen carefully to your options.  The decision of course is yours to make, but in the end, you may be able to join other happy couples in welcoming home your new baby after all.

Fertility Treatment

With so many more persons being overweight and out-and-out obese these days, many are wondering if there really is any truth to the rumor that obesity and infertility go hand-in-hand. How is it that being overweight can interfere with your reproductive abilities? How can a few extra pounds mean that much damage to your body? What about those that are obese that have been able to conceive? In order to examine these issues fully, let’s take a look at some of the suspected reasons that obesity and infertility seem to be related.

Reasons for Obesity

Regardless of what some people may assume, it’s generally accepted among the medical community that obesity does not just happen. Some would like to think that it’s all genetic, but many scientists know that when a person changes their eating habits and physical activity levels, they lose weight. So saying that obesity and infertility are two things that you can do nothing about is rather shortsighted – which also should be thought of as good news. If obesity and infertility were all a matter of genetics, then you would be trapped, with no choices or things you can do to fix the situation.

So, when studying the reasons for one’s obesity, we see the connection to infertility. High-fat diets add to elevated cholesterol levels in the body, and as we see cholesterol clinging to the arteries and areas around the heart, it does the same to the reproductive system. Cholesterol chokes out a man’s ability to produce healthy sperm and a woman’s ability to ovulate a healthy egg.

Additionally, another connection between obesity and infertility may have much to do with exercise and physical activity. Exercise gets the blood circulating properly and in a healthy way, and this oxygen-rich blood is necessary for all functions of the body, including the reproductive system. Without the antioxidants provided by blood that’s been freshly filtered through the lungs, any malformation or problems the body has is not going to be fixed or repaired the way it should be.

Extra Body Weight

Another connection between obesity and infertility seems to be the extra body weight itself. This extra weight on a man may block his sperm ducts, and blocked sperm ducts are one of the most common reasons for infertility in men. Additionally, a woman who has extra weight around her midsection may also have problems with ovulation, as this puts undue pressure on the fallopian tubes. It also puts this pressure on the uterus, causing it to contract unnaturally. When a woman’s uterus is compromised, a fertilized egg cannot attach itself, and she will miscarry it before she even knows she is pregnant.

So it seems as if there are some reasons to be concerned about the connection between obesity and infertility. Again, no one wants to be told that they need to lose weight, or to think that their own body weight may be interfering with their plans to have a baby, but at least they know that there is something they can do about the situation!

Fertility Treatment

It may seem like an odd question, wondering if there are actual signs of infertility.  After all, it’s a pretty safe bet that if a couple are having regular, unprotected sex for many months without a resultant pregnancy, then this should be a pretty obvious sign in of itself.  However, many couples realize that they simply cannot be having as much sexual activity as they would like, and that it does take several details to be all aligned at the same time in order for conception to take place.  They may wonder if they perhaps are just victims of circumstance or if medical intervention is really necessary.  If this sounds like you, then let’s take a moment to discuss the true signs of infertility, and if you find that any of these are present in your case, you can be sure to mention them to your doctor during that appointment.

Amenorrhea.

Amenorrhea is the term used to describe when a woman does not have menstrual periods when she should.  Women normally do not menstruate before puberty, during pregnancy, and after menopause.  At other times, she should have regular menstrual cycles every month; if she doesn’t, this may be a sign of infertility or another treatable medical condition, however, there are some conditions that cause this cessation of periods that may also cause infertility.

Amenorrhea can be caused by any number of changes in the organs, glands, and hormones involved in menstruation.  Possible causes include:

Failure of the ovaries (female sex organs that hold eggs).
Problems in the central nervous system (brain and spinal cord) or the pituitary gland (a gland in the brain that makes hormones involved in menstruation).
Poorly formed reproductive organs.
Hormonal imbalance due to polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS)

In these cases, amenorrhea may be a sign of infertility in the woman.

Miscarriages.

A miscarriage is the loss (death) of a baby before the 20th week of pregnancy.  According to the March of Dimes, as many as 50% of all pregnancies end in miscarriage – most often before a woman misses a menstrual period or even knows she is pregnant.  About 15% of recognized pregnancies will end in a miscarriage.  Miscarriage itself is not necessarily a sign of infertility, however, if miscarriages happen because of difficulties with a woman’s reproductive system, then the two may be related.

Other signs of infertility.

An OB/GYN may look for other causes for a woman’s difficulty in conceiving, including endometriosis, a condition in which the tissue lining the uterus (the endometrium) is found outside of the uterus, pelvic inflammatory disease, an infection caused by bacteria that starts in the uterus and can spread to other reproductive organs, stenosis (narrowing) of the cervix, the lower part of the uterus (the hollow, pear-shaped organ where a baby grows), often caused by scarring, and tumors (also called “fibroids”), or growths on the inner wall of the uterus.  All of these can also be considered signs of infertility that would necessitate medical intervention.

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