Infertility

Infertility, the inability of a couple to conceive a child after  at least one year of regular and unprotected intercourse. It is estimated that a woman without any fertility problems has a 30 % chance of becoming pregnant during a menstrual cycle; if conception occurs, only about 50% to 60% of pregnancies continue beyond the twentieth week.

It can be caused by a woman's failure to ovulate or blocked fallopian tubes (the passages leading from the ovary to the uterus) or a man's low sperm count, among many other factors. In cases of infertility, about one third are due to factors affecting the man, while another third are due to factors affecting the woman. The remaining percentage is caused by factors affecting both partners.

About 85 to 90 percent of women will get pregnant during a year of unprotected sex. If you and your partner do not conceive after a year of trying, call your health care provider. He or she can determine whether one of you is infertile, and may recommend that you see an infertility specialist for treatment.

Diagnosing infertility

Infertility is diagnosed by first analyzing the man's semen to determine his sperm count. Discovering whether a woman is fertile is somewhat more complex, and may include studying the woman's menstrual patterns by following her body temperature throughout the cycle and testing blood and urine for the presence of certain hormones.

Treatment of infertility is successful about half of the time. Sometimes it can be as simple as having the man stop smoking or drinking alcohol, both of which can reduce his sperm count. When the male sperm count is low for reasons that cannot be corrected, a couple may try artificial insemination with the man's sperm, artificial insemination with a donor's sperm, or administering hormonal drugs to stimulate sperm production.

If a woman's fallopian tubes have been damaged, surgical treatment to correct the damage may be successful. Women who are having trouble producing eggs may be given drugs to stimulate egg production. If a woman's internal reproductive structures cannot support fertilization but can support pregnancy, the couple may opt for in-vitro fertilization, in which the egg and sperm are united outside the body. The fertilized egg is then implanted in the woman's uterus.