Infertility Symptoms – Definitions

When a couple cannot have a baby after 12 months of regular and unprotected intercourse, they can be classified infertile. Infertility is the inability to have a baby.

One or both partners have varying emotional reactions when they are diagnosed as infertile. Severe reactions occur more frequently among childless couples.

Infertile couples who’ve never had children are classified under primary infertility.

On another note, secondary infertility refers to the condition where couples who already succeeded in having a baby are finding problems conceiving again.

Masculinity – The Male Element

Several emotional and physical factors can cause infertility.

Around 30 to 40% of infertility cases in men are attributed to maleness factors like retrograde ejaculation, low sperm count, scarring from STDs, hormone problems, environmental pollutants, and others.

Intake of prescription drugs like nitrofurantoin, cimetidine and spironolactone and even frequent marijuana use can negatively affect sperm count.

The Woman Factor

Ovarian cysts, tumors, pelvic infection, hormonal imbalances, ovarian dysfunction, enometriosis, fallopian tube abnormalities, scarring from STD are some examples of “female factors.” These comprise 40 to 50 % of infertility cases among couples.

Factors contributed by both individuals and unidentifiable factors are responsible for 10 to 30% of all infertility cases.

It has been found that a small number, just 10 to 20%, of couples fail to conceive after trying for a year. It is essential for couples to keep trying to conceive for a year at the very least.

Age Sensitive Causes

Healthy couples who are under 30 years old and have sex regularly have a 25 to 30% chance monthly of getting pregnant. A woman’s fertility peak is during her 20s. The likelihood of pregnancy for women above 35 years old is less than 10% each month, even less for those beyond 40 years old.

Other Causes Not Age Related

Factors related to age are not the sole reasons for infertility. Infertility may also be worsened by the following:

* Having more than one sexual partner (high STD risk)
* STDs
* Pelvic inflammatory disease history
* Orchitis or epididymitis history in males
* Males who’ve had mumps
* Male varicocle
* A history that includes exposure to DES
* Eating problems among females
* Anovulatory and irregular menstrual cycles
* Endometriosis
* Defects of the uterus (myomas) or blockage of the cervix
* Long-term disease like diabetes

Other Useful Information

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