Male Infertility Types
What is Infertility?
The definition of infertility is the inability to conceive after at least a year of frequent, unprotected intercourse.
About one-third of infertility cases are caused by female causes, while another third are caused by a combination of male and female factors. In the other situations, the cause is either unknown or a mix of factors related to both genders.
It might be challenging to identify the causes of female infertility. Various treatments exist, contingent on the underlying reason of infertility. Many infertile couples will eventually become parents naturally.
Infertility can be a:
- Primary infertility: You have never given birth and are unable to do so even after a year of consistent, unprotected sexual activity (six months if you are 35 years of age or older).
- Secondary infertility: Following at least one successful pregnancy, you are unable to become pregnant again.
- Unexplained infertility: No medical condition has been identified by fertility testing as the cause of an individual's or couple's infertility.
Types of male infertility:
The underlying cause of infertility affects the therapy for infertility in females. Among the most popular therapies are:
- Ovulation Induction: This procedure entails injecting orally administering medicine to the female in order to induce ovulation.
- Intrauterine Insemination (IUI): IUI involves injecting sperm into the female uterus directly after they have been processed and chosen for maximum quality and motility.
- Sperm morphology, or abnormal sperm shape or size, is the subject of this discussion. Infections, exposure to toxins, or hereditary factors can all result in abnormalities in sperm morphology.
- Erection dysfunction (ED): is the inability to get or keep an erection strong enough for sexual activity. Physical problems including nerve injury, hormone abnormalities, or cardiovascular illness are common causes of ED.
- When semen is ejaculated into the bladder rather than the penis, it is known as retrograde ejaculation. Numerous things, such as specific drugs, nerve damage, or surgery, might result in it.
Symptoms:
Male infertility often shows no signs at all. But there are a few indicators and symptoms that could point to male infertility, such as:
- Erectile dysfunction is the inability to obtain or sustain an erection.
- Diminished or nonexistent lust for sex.
- The testicles or scrotum may hurt, enlarge, or develop lumps.
- Reduced body or facial hair, as well as other indicators of an imbalance in hormones.
- Breast growth that is abnormal (gynecomastia).
- Issues related to ejaculation, include retrograde ejaculation.
Causes:
Male infertility is most commonly caused by issues with the motility (the ability of the sperm to move) or count (the quantity of sperm that are produced).
Additional factors contributing to male infertility comprise of:
- Varicocele, or enlarged veins in the scrotum, the sac containing the testicles.
- Genetic illnesses like cystic fibrosis.
- Chromosome abnormalities, like Klinefelter syndrome.
- Wearing tight clothing, using hot tubs and saunas frequently, and placing laptops or heated pads on or close to your testicles can all expose your testicles to high heat.
- Damage to your testicles or scrotum.
- Hypogonadism: low testosterone levels.
- Abuse of steroids used for anabolism.
- An ejaculation, retrograde ejaculation, premature ejaculation, and erectile dysfunction are examples of sexual dysfunction.
- Testicles not descended.
- Prior radiotherapy or chemotherapy.
- Testicles missing due to surgery or birth defects.
- Sterilization by prior surgery (vasectomy).
Diagnoses Options:
Ensuring that a person ejaculates viable sperm is usually the first step in diagnosing infertility in those who have a penis. The majority of fertility tests search for sperm issues.
These examinations can aid in problem diagnosis or exclusion:
- Semen analysis: This test looks for decreased sperm motility and count. For diagnostic purposes, some individuals require a needle biopsy to extract sperm from their testicles.
- Blood test: Thyroid and other hormone levels can be checked using a blood test. Blood tests with genetics search for chromosomal abnormalities.
- Ultrasound of the scrotum: This procedure detects varicocele or other issues related to the testicles.
Infertility Treatments for Males:
Depending on the root cause of their infertility, men might choose from a wide range of infertility therapies. Male infertility treatments include the following:
- Donor sperm is used in intrauterine insemination (IUI), which is the process of inserting prepared donor sperm into the female partner's uterus.
- Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI) in conjunction with In Vitro Fertilization (IVF): In this procedure, a single viable sperm is injected into the egg of the female partner in a lab, fertilizing it before the fertilized embryo is placed into the woman's uterus.
- Surgical Sperm Retrieval: The process of surgical sperm retrieval involves operating on the male reproductive system to remove sperm from the testes directly or from the epididymis, a coiled tube that stores and transports sperm, in situations where there are no sperm in the semen.
- Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART): This treatment for infertility uses lab procedures including Intracytoplasmic Morphologically Selected Sperm Injection (IMSI) and Testicular Sperm Extraction (TESE) to increase sperm production.
- Hormone therapy: When male infertility results from hormonal imbalances that block sperm production, this kind of infertility treatment is applied. Hormonal therapy may aid in boosting sperm count and improving the likelihood of becoming pregnant.
Infertility Prevention for Males:
There are several actions that males can take to help prevent infertility. Here are some potential ways to reduce the risk of male infertility:
- Maintain a healthy lifestyle.
- Reduce stress.
- Avoid exposure to toxins.
- Protect the testes.
- Limit alcohol and drug use.
- Avoid tight clothing.
- Seek early treatment.
