Female Factors Infertility
Age of the woman: Delaying conception until thirties and forties has lead to adverse effect on egg function. In fact, maternal age-related infertility is the most common reason for infertility today. As women age, egg numbers also decrease at a rapid rate. The ideal age for a woman to conceive is between 21-29 years.
Ovulation issues: Normal ovulation is the release of single mature egg every month. It is essential for a woman to conceive naturally. Ovulation is detected using a menstrual calendar. There are many disorders that affect a woman’s ability to ovulate normally. The most common disorders is polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). It causes infrequent or irregular cycles causing it difficult for a woman to conceive.
Tubal Blockage: History of sexually transmitted infections such as Chlamydia, Gonorrhea, or Pelvic Inflammatory Disease can predispose a woman to have blocked fallopian tubes. Tubal blocks is a cause of infertility because an ovulated egg is unable to be fertilized by sperm or to reach the endometrial cavity.
Uterine Fibroids: Fibroids are common in 40% of women and the mere presence of them does not have to cause infertility. It is the submucosal fibroids that have shown to reduce pregnancy rate, by approx 50%, and removal of which will double pregnancy rate. In some cases, simply removing the submucosal fibroid solves infertility. Our physician will examine you carefully to tell you if you have fibroids and if removal is needed.
Endometriosis: Presence of Endometrial tissue outside the uterus like Ovary, on tube, Peritoneum.
Adenomyosis: Adenomyosis are growth like projections in the uterine cavity arising from the lining of the uterus called the endometrium. These abnormalities are rarely associated with cancer but they can decrease fertility by up to 50% in a few cases.
Male factors Infertility
It is associated in causing infertility in 40-50% of cases. If a semen analysis is found to be abnormal, generally it is first repeated to confirm the abnormality. Once confirmed, the male partner is referred to a reproductive urologist, if the abnormality is severe.