Infertility is the inability to conceive or carry a pregnancy after a period of six months to one year of regular and unprotected sexual intercourse. Most complicated and extremely sensitive pregnancies that result in cases of miscarriages often raise infertility signals. To be diagnosed with infertility, one must set an appointment with a fertility specialist to undergo thorough assessments.
To kick off your journey of tests and procedures, a discussion on your medical history will be required. For both men and women, it is essential to disclose childhood illness, family medical history of conditions, lifestyle and major changes, diet preference and sexual practices.
In order to fully understand the problem and the different causes of the condition, infertility testing is necessary to monitor the fertility factors that affect conception and the chances of pregnancy. These fertility tests include Female Surgical Testing, Hormonal Testing, Male Surgical Testing, Semen Analysis, Ultrasound Testing and Postcoital Testing.
Primarily, fertility specialists would suggest non-invasive types of infertility testing. As follows:
- Hormonal Testing for both men and women – Blood Test are performed to analyze the testosterone level for men, progesterone level for women, Lutenizing Hormones (LH) and Follicle Stimulating Hormones (FSH). The information derived from these procedures help identify problems in the endocrine system. Hormonal imbalance plays a vital role in conception, as such imbalance cause ovulation and menstrual cycle disruption for women and sperm production in men.
- Semen Analysis – a type of infertility test that helps determine sperm quality, motility, count, shape and also identifies infertility problems that cause difficulty in conception.
- Ovarian Reserve Testing – This procedure is done on women to determine the quality of eggs being produced during ovulation and to simulate their effectiveness for conception.
- Ultrasound Testing – A procedure that can be performed on men and women, this type of testing is used to identify obstructions and blockages that hinder the normal flow of ovulation and sperm production cycles. Uterine ultrasound performed on women is done to assess the quality, position, size and efficacy of the uterus to carry a fetus upon egg fertilization.
- Postcoital Test– a procedure performed after sexual intercourse to determine fertility problems like hostile cervical mucus wherein sperm could not survive journey towards for egg fertilization. This procedure is also used to determine any possible defects with sperm production.
Invasive infertility tests are suggested when non-invasive procedures have been exhausted and still no infertility cause could be diagnosed. Mostly, the female surgical and male surgical tests are performed to identify the irregularities of the reproductive organs.
Male surgical tests include Vasography, wherein a radioactive dye is injected onto the vas deferens and an X-ray is performed to identify any blockages in the reproductive tracts. The female version of the procedure is called Hysterosalpingography, which evaluates the condition of the uterus and fallopian tubes.
Thorough understanding on the condition of infertility and the possible options to take to overcome the problem, a number of infertility tests are suggested to be performed on you and your partner. Prior to taking part in any infertility test or procedure, it is important for you and your partner to discuss the extent of testing you will partake in.
Once infertility tests are performed, it is most likely that you will have a clearer understanding of the condition and will make logical decisions on the different infertility treatments to consider.