Things You Need To Know About Fertility Treatments

The most common cause of infertility is ovaries not being able to produce an egg. This issue becomes predominant above a certain age. The other causes could be poor functioning of fallopian tubes, wherein the fallopian tube might be damaged or scarred by disease endometriosis. Problems with the uterus can also cause infertility. In males, low sperm count/poor sperm quality can also be the reason for infertility. Today, with the help of technology, infertility is treatable.

Infertility is the inability to conceive or to carry the pregnancy to full term. With various fertility treatments, there is a better chance of being able to conceive.

Fertility medicine:

The first step in treating infertility is through aiding the process through fertility medicine. Right fertility medicine increases the chance of conceiving by promoting ovulation. Some fertility drugs work by stimulating hormones in the brain that stimulate the egg to develop and release from the ovary, while other fertility drugs work by stimulating the ovaries to produce eggs. Advantage of fertility drugs is that it also helps improve and balance female hormonal levels.

Intrauterine Insemination (IUI):

It is a popular reproductive technique where sperm is deposited directly into the uterus through a woman's cervix. Artificial insemination and IUI may benefit those with male factor infertility, unexplained infertility, or cervical mucus problems. IUI also helps single women and gay couples get pregnant and have children using donor sperm.

In vitro fertilization (IVF):

It is a method of assisted reproduction involving surgical removal of the egg from the ovary and combining it with the semen prepared in the culture dish where fertilization takes place. Post fertilization, the embryo is transferred to the woman's uterus.

Intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI):

This technique is helpful for male infertility problems, such as low sperm count, poor sperm quality, or sperm that cannot fertilize the egg. With this technique, a man's sperm is injected directly into the egg for IVF.

Egg-freezing:

This technique involves stimulating the ovary with hormones to produce multiple eggs, retrieving the eggs from the ovary, and storing them in the laboratory, where they are refrigerated to a subzero temperature. Frozen eggs are stored at -196 degrees temperatures so that they do not deteriorate over time. Eggs can then be retrieved and used for in-vitro fertilization (IVF) or ICSI.

Donor sperm:

Pregnancy through donor sperm is achieved by placing the donor sperm into a woman's vagina, cervix, or uterine cavity. Donor sperm helps overcome male infertility when a man has low sperm count or does not have sperm, or poor sperm quality.

Donor eggs:

Donor eggs from volunteers are fertilized externally using a partner's sperm or donor sperm. The fertilized embryo is then placed into the woman's womb for implantation and pregnancy. Women may choose to use donor eggs if ovarian reserve or premature ops are low. Some women use donor eggs to reduce the risk of inherited disease.