Understanding Infertility Factors

When addressing infertility, we assess various factors that might be causing the issue. These factors can be present in the male, female, or both partners.

Male Infertility Factors

During intercourse, the male partner ejaculates semen into the vagina. The sperm in the semen then swim up through the female reproductive tract to fertilize the egg.

How We Evaluate Male Infertility Factors:

We perform a semen analysis to assess sperm health. This test measures:

• Sperm Concentration: Ideally, there should be at least 15 million sperm per milliliter.
• Sperm Motility: At least 50% of the sperm should be actively moving.

In a typical menstrual cycle, an egg develops in the ovary over about 14 days before being released during ovulation. This egg can meet a sperm, get fertilized, and form an embryo. The embryo then attaches to the endometrial lining of the uterus to develop into a pregnancy.

How We Evaluate Female Infertility Factors:

• Follicular Monitoring: This involves serial sonography of the ovaries and uterus to track the egg’s growth and monitor the thickness of the endometrial lining.
• Timed Ovulation: When the follicle reaches 18-22 mm, we give a trigger injection to facilitate ovulation within 36 hours. We then guide you on the optimal time to have intercourse.

Alternatively, we can perform Intrauterine Insemination (IUI), where processed semen containing only good, motile sperm is deposited directly into the uterus using a special catheter. IUI is a simple, almost painless procedure with a success rate of around 15%.