A. It's the best job in the world. Partnering with couples to help create families. (That's why we are "Reproductive Partners") What could be better?
Q. What is the #1 reason for infertility?
A. There is really no #1 reason for infertility. 40% of the time, it's related to the male, 40% of the time it's related to the female, 20% you can't determine (unexplained). Male factor has to do with the quality of sperm. Female factor can be associated with numerous reasons. This can include problems with anatomy, ovulation, or the quality of the eggs. Quality of eggs is most related to the natural process of aging. Women's peak fertility occurs around age 22. Until age 32, fertility remains relatively stable. Even to age 38, changes are relatively subtle. After age 38 however, fertility begins to drop more noticeably. Unexplained infertility means there is not a specific reason found for the infertility.
Q. There seems to be a lot more infertility issues these days? Why is that? Will eating more organic and using less microwave ovens and cell phones help?
A. More women and couples are deferring having their families until a later age. There is nothing wrong with enjoying personal time, but we often don't realize that time is passing quickly. The lifetime chance of having a child at age 40 (70%) is significantly lower than that at age 30 (95%). Increasingly, lifestyle issues have been shown to influence a couple's fertility. This applies to both men and women. A healthy lifestyle minimizing and eliminating stress, nicotine, caffeine, and alcohol have been shown to improve a couples chances of conceiving. Less is known about microwave ovens, cell phones, and position. There is also a genetic component of a woman's reproductive age. If your mom and grandmother transitioned to menopause early, you can anticipate a similar early transition to menopause and a shortened reproductive window.
Q. Do you get a lot of women, like Angelina Jolie, without a history of infertility issues go in for IVF just to speed things up and make sure they get pregnant?
A. In our practice's 20+ year history, we have seen everything. In general, IVF is used for the treatment of infertility for couples dealing with infertility and other reproductive/medical issues. In reality, every case is different, and we individualize treatment based on each couple's needs. We really try to create a partnership with couples to achieve their goals. And no, we do not purposely try to achieve twins.
Q. What are the risks of infertility treatment? You hear a lot about the hormones used in treatment to cause cancer, what are the facts relating to that?
A. The risks of infertility treatment are mainly associated with the risks of multiple pregnancies. Twin pregnancy is an acceptable result with a little added risk to the pregnancy. But triplets and more bear greater risks associated with prematurity, birth defects, and the mom's health during pregnancy. There is no association thought to exist between the hormones used for infertility treatment and cancer. There is a small association between being infertile and cancer. Sometimes if the ovaries make too many eggs, some women can get Ovarian Hyperstimulation Stimulation Syndrome (OHSS) and become very sick. It is important to balance getting sufficient eggs and not causing undo risk to women.
Q. Are there differences between IVF babies and naturally conceived babies?
A. No.
Q. Can you 100% determine the sex of the baby through some sort of sperm sorting process? Or at least better than 50/50?
A. Microsort which our office offers can detect sperm for males to 73% accuracy and sperm for females to 88% accuracy. The only method that is virtually 100% is Preimplantatiion Genetic Diagnosis (PGD) which can be used in conjunction with IVF.
Q. Women who have problems conceiving deal with a lot of grief and anger. How do you deal with the emotional aspect of your patients?
A. Studies show that the stress of infertility is comparable to the stress of being diagnosed with cancer. We sometimes suggest stress reduction programs, personal and couple's counseling or acupuncture for stress reduction. Studies have shown that such programs can help to improve chances of conceiving.
Q. We hear more about female infertility but how do you correct male infertility? What is the ratio between male and female infertility? Who has more issues?
A. In general for patients less than 40 years old, the cause of infertility is about 40% male factor, 40% female factor, 20% unexplained. With age, female fertility declines more rapidly than male fertility. After age 40, the ratio shifts more to the female. Male infertility can be treated by correcting medical issues, lifestyle changes, artificial insemination, or in the most severe cases, IVF with Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI).
Q. What is the average success rate of infertility treatments?
A. This is age and program dependent. At our program, in 2006 women under 35 years of age had a 54% chance of livebirth per cycle of IVF. Those 35 - 37 years of age had a 50% chance of delivering a child.
Between 38 - 40 years of age, the chance decreased to 32%,
Credits –
This information is provided by Andy Huang, M.D. in coordination with Tot Snob, the All Things Tots blog. Dr. Huang is one of the team of outstanding fertility doctors at the Los Angeles offices of the
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2 comments:
Thanks for sharing this article in your blog.
It was very nice.Looking for more..................
Women usually take the brunt of the infertility stigma but the male can also have issues relating to their age as it relates to the ability conceive. A study of over 12000 couples done a couple years ago concluded the age of the male was a contributing factor the number if miscarriages and issues conceiving at all.
Sperm quantity and quality was examined as part of the In-vitro Fertilization process. Miscarriages were more prevalent when the male was of 40 years of age, even if the female was not. Researchers felt the data supported the findings that the age of the male as a significant factor in the viability of the fetus. These researchers also recommended that in case where the male was over 40, couples having fertility issues should elect to have the sperm injected directly in the egg to help the chances for success.
Although no technique is guaranteed, studies like this one gives credence to the idea that couples over 40 who have issues trying to conceive, may not entirely be an issue with the female. Men over 40 can be a contributing factor that can delay or even prevent a successful pregnancy.
http://gravitygarden.com/trying-to-have-a-baby/getting-pregnant-after-40.html
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