Tests For Infertility – Go With Ultrasound First

Signs of infertility are really very simple: Either a couple conceives or they don’t – and if they don’t for over a year – this is a sign of infertility.

And two reasons that aging reduces a woman’s fertility are diminished health of her eggs and a reduced ability of the ovaries to release them. They also have a higher risk for miscarriage and other health problems that affect their fertility.

In her twenties is when a woman’s fertility is highest with a steadily increasing difficulty in conceiving into her thirties – as her ovaries stop making eggs at the rate they once did. The risk of miscarriage generally doesn’t become an issue until she reaches at least thirty-six. Drinking and smoking increases the level of infertility in all women. Today, aging is the most common fertility problem as women are choosing to have their first child at 35 or older.

When women fail to conceive after a whole year of intercourse, they are considered to fall in the Primary Infertility category. If they have conceived once before but have gone a year without conceiving (while trying the whole year), they are considered to be in the Secondary Infertility category.

Infertility runs at a fifty-fifty ratio between males and females, according to some experts. Others say that females have sixty percent of infertility issues. Statistically, ten percent of couples who are trying to conceive will have trouble, and four out of five will succeed within one year. A normal amount of time to conceive is up to two years.

Often, couples must each submit to thorough physical examinations to determine their fertility factors. There is a general misunderstanding by many couples that it’s only the female who could possibly have the fertility issue. Males, however, account for a large percentage, which is why it’s important that they get a medical exam as well.

As a baseline for later comparison, one of the first tests done will be a woman’s LH – or Luteinizing Hormone and her FSH – or Follicle Stimulating Hormone. Normally, these tests are done on a woman’s first visit and her third visit to the specialist. The tests for these two hormones – LH and FSH – can also be performed on the male as well, if deemed appropriate by the fertility specialist. These hormones are both critical for the development of sperm cells.

There are many other fertility tests available to the fertility specialist. Some of these – for the female – are the cervical mucus test, hormone tests (other than LH or FSH), and ultrasound tests. The cervical mucus test is done less often now, but sometimes it’s done because the male does not want to be tested. For this test, two to eight hours after intercourse, the doctor will test the vaginal mucus for the presence and health of sperm.

A pelvic ultrasound test will take from 20 to 30 minutes, and is a great way for a doctor to assess the overall condition of the female’s uterus and ovaries, and the follicle development on the ovaries. It is also used to see if an egg has been released from an ovary.

Reproductive Endocrinologists can test for many other important hormones, other than just the luteinizing hormone and the follicle stimulating hormone. The primary ones are: androstenedione, DHEAS, total testosterone, progesterone, estradiol, prolactin, free T3, and free testosterone.

Infertility can make couples go to great lengths to fix any problems in order to conceive. And the treatments can get very expensive, especially considering that most treatments for infertility are not covered by any insurance. Hopefully, any problems can be remedied with prescription drug therapy, such as taking metformin and clomiphene for PCOS infertility. (PCOS stands for Polycystic Ovary Syndrome).

Failure to ovulate can be treated by clomiphene, with the next level of treatment being hormone therapy. One of the more undesirable side-effects of hormone therapy is the increased likelihood of having 3 or 4 babies all at once.

In Vitro Fertilization (a.k.a. “IVF”) is at the top of the most extreme measures that a couple can take in their effort to conceive. Expensive, emotionally and physically taxing, it requires daily hormone injections (can be painful), daily monitoring by a doctor, and regular blood testing. With acupuncture by fertility acupuncture specialists in combination with IVF, however, the success rate is very high indeed – one in three couples are parents. This can come with the ‘cost,’ however, of having to raise twins (one-third of couples who use IVF and get pregnant have twins).

Janet has been publishing helpful articles on fertility and pregnancy for years. Discover more about acupuncture and infertility and ways to monitor fertility with innovative solutions such as the Clearblue Fertility Monitor and other methods on the website.

categories: pregnancy,infertility,fertility,babies,women’s issues,women,health