| Infertility (differently called sterility) is the inability to get pregnant after, at least, a year of attempting. A woman is not necessarily to be blamed. In 30% of cases sterility is because of female factors. In another one third of cases, infertility is due to the man. The remaining cases are brought on by a combination of male and female factors or by unidentified factors.
In most cases problems with ovulation cause sterility in women. If a female menstruates irregularly or does not menstruate at all, she might have abnormal ovulation. Less common causes of fertility problems in females include blocked salpinges because of pelvic inflammatory disease (PID), endometriosis, or surgery for an ectopic pregnancy, physical problems with the womb, uterine fibroids.
Many factors can badly influence the female inability to conceive a child. They are age, nerve-racking situations, unhealthy diet, athletic training, being obese or underweight, heavy smoking, substance abuse, sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), health problems that bring on hormonal imbalances.
The most common cause of male infertility is a varicocele. Varicocele is an abnormal enlargement of the vein in the scrotum that drains the testes. This may badly impact upon sperm production. A blockage in a male reproductive system may trigger male sterility. Some medications may also result in sterility. Other causes of male infertility may include low sperm count, undescended testes, health problems. Smokers have a 13-17% lower sperm count that those non-smokers. Addiction to alcohol can considerably lower the sperm count. Tight fitting apparel and prolonged periods of sitting can result in a drop in sperm count through excessive heating of the testes. Marijuana, cocaine and anabolic steroids all lower the sperm count and affect motility. At times the cause of male infertility is unknown. In these cases, there may be an underlying genetic problem.
Both men and females require some form of assisted conception if pregnancy does not happen naturally. |
