In recent decades, infertility has gradually become a social problem as the age of marriage has been delayed and childless couples have increased dramatically. Experts estimate that one out of every six couples who want to have a child are still childless. Although infertility is not life-threatening, it seriously affects the peace of families and the stability of society.
So what exactly is infertility? In the past, we defined “infertility” as the absence of pregnancy after two years of regular contraceptive-free sex, but now the time period has been shortened to one year. The treatment of infertility has become increasingly important. In the past, traditional treatments for infertility were ineffective and there were many misconceptions. This has seriously affected the outcome of the patient’s treatment. The following is a brief analysis of the misunderstandings in infertility treatment.
Myth 1: Is all infertility caused by the female partner?
There was a woman from a rural area who brought her son and daughter-in-law to the clinic. After a series of tests for the woman proved that the woman was normal, the doctor suggested that the man should also have some tests. The woman was adamantly opposed to this, saying, “Do men still need to be tested? My son has no problem because the woman is a chicken that can’t lay eggs. Finally, with the doctor’s patience and convincing, a semen test was done for the male partner, who was found to have oligozoospermia.
When the doctor told the couple that the infertility was caused by the male partner, the woman actually cried out in pain. For many years, she had suffered a lot of abuse and insults for not having children, and all the people put the blame on her for infertility. She has seen many “experts” and taken many unexplained pills, but now she can finally hold her head up and be a human being.
The normal process of conception begins with the meeting of the sperm and egg, usually after ovulation, the egg enters the end of the funnel-shaped fallopian tube, where it is gradually moved towards the uterus by small hairs, and the egg meets the sperm in the fallopian tube, at which point, if all goes well, one of the millions of sperm in the semen will pass through the egg’s cell membrane and enter the egg to form a fertilized egg. The fertilized egg then divides and moves towards the uterus.
If everything is ready, the embryo will implant in the endometrium after four or five days and the pregnancy will begin. During the first 8 weeks or so after implantation, if the corpus luteum is underdeveloped or the progesterone level is too low, the developing embryo will be lost along with the endometrium, causing a miscarriage.
It is thus clear that marriage and childbirth are a joint venture of both spouses, and problems with either partner can cause infertility, with equal chances of male and female factors causing infertility. Therefore, the search for the cause of fertility problems and their treatment must include both partners of the couple.
Finding the cause of infertility is the first step in treating infertility. The causes of infertility are: failure of the ovaries to ovulate normally; abnormalities in the quality and quantity of semen and sperm; failure of the egg and sperm to become fertilized in the fallopian tube; and failure of the fertilized egg to enter the uterine cavity for normal implantation.
Among the problems belonging to the female partner are.
I. Egg maturation disorders: The following factors can cause ovarian dysfunction leading to non-ovulation.
1, ovarian lesions, such as congenital ovarian insufficiency, polycystic ovary syndrome, premature ovarian failure, functional ovarian tumors, ovarian endometriosis cysts, etc.;
2, hypothalamic-pituitary-ovarian axis dysfunction, causing anovulatory menstruation, amenorrhea, etc;
3, systemic diseases (severe malnutrition, hyperthyroidism, etc.) affect ovarian function and lead to anovulation.
Tubal factors: one third of infertile women have tubal obstruction (complete or partial). The most common is an infected injury. Other causes may be: earlier tubal pregnancy or post-surgical adhesions or endometriosis.
Third, uterine factors: congenital malformation of the uterus, submucosal fibroids, endometritis, endometrial tuberculosis, endometrial polyps, uterine adhesions or poor endometrial secretion response affecting fertilized egg implantation.
Cervical factors: The amount and nature of cervical mucus is closely related to whether sperm can enter the uterine cavity. Insufficient estrogen or cervical canal infection can change the nature and amount of mucus, affecting sperm vitality and the number of sperm entering. Cervical polyps and cervical fibroids can block the cervical canal and affect the passage of sperm, and the narrowing of the cervical opening can also cause infertility.
V. Vaginal factors: The narrowing of the vagina after injury or congenital malformation of the vagina can affect intercourse and prevent sperm from entering. In severe vaginitis, a large number of leukocytes consume the energy material present in the semen, reducing sperm vitality and shortening their survival time and affecting conception.
Immunological factors: most patients have antibodies in their cervical secretions against the male partner’s sperm; very few patients’ bodies cannot recognize their own egg cells and their immune systems produce antibodies, with the result that sperm cannot enter the uterus and cannot be fertilized.
Among the problems belonging to the male partner are.
I. Sperm production disorders: the most common problem affecting male fertility is – insufficient production of normal, freely moving sperm. If there are more than 20 million sperm in no ml of semen, the quality is normal. Even in normal men, most sperm are not perfect and many do not swim properly, but at least 30% must be morphologically normal and 50% must be freely mobile.
If this standard is not met, male fertility will be reduced. However, even if sperm are normal, functional problems may prevent them from reaching the egg. Mumps in childhood can lead to a decrease in the productivity of healthy sperm. Varicose veins in the testicles may also lead to low sperm quality. Other causes such as hormonal disorders, stress, environmental factors, undescended testes or genetic factors may all lead to low sperm quality.
Second, sperm vasectomy disorders: In 4% of cases, their sperm production is sufficient, but they cannot enter the woman’s body during ejaculation due to obstruction of the vas deferens. This condition is similar to the obstruction of the vas deferens in the female partner. Possible causes are sterilization surgery or vas deferens insufficiency or adhesion, often due to earlier infection of the reproductive organs.
Immunological factors: A few patients have antibodies against their own sperm in the body, and the ejaculated sperm occur their own agglutination and cannot pass through the cervical mucus causing infertility.
The development of contemporary reproductive medicine has made it possible to provide effective treatment for infertility of the above-mentioned causes. In particular, male infertility, which used to be helpless, can now have its own offspring with the advent of assisted reproductive technology.
Myth 2: Can all infertility be cured by Chinese medicine?
I once rescued such a patient in the emergency room. She came to the clinic with acute renal failure and found out from her medical history that she was a patient with a three-year history of infertility and went to a hospital in Beijing after seeing a TV commercial. So she spent nearly 10,000 yuan to carry back a sack of Chinese medicine from Beijing, decocted every morning and evening, and after a few months she became fatter and fatter day by day, and her menstruation did not come, she was full of joy that she was pregnant, but only when she went to the hospital for a laboratory test did she know that not only was the baby not conceived, but her liver function was also damaged. When she returned home, she was so anxious and angry that she fell ill. This is a common occurrence in our center, although some of the consequences are not so serious, but also delayed the best time for patients to seek treatment.
Chinese medicine is the main traditional treatment for infertility in China, and it does work well for some infertility caused by endocrine disorders, however, not all infertility can be treated by Chinese medicine. It is necessary to use modern treatment programs to help the sperm and egg unite outside the body and then place the formed embryo into the mother’s uterus in order to help her get pregnant.
Misconception 3: Can all fallopian tubes be mechanically reopened?
One infertile woman came to the clinic and said that she had been to all major hospitals and had undergone various tests and was diagnosed with complete bilateral blockage of the fallopian tubes. She had undergone tubal recanalization over and over again, and so far she had undergone a total of 168 tubal recanalizations, which were supposed to be “all the way through”. She often had backache and lower abdominal pain. The patient’s old disease was not removed and new symptoms were added. The patient was in great pain.
In such cases of complete bilateral tubal obstruction, neither tubal lavage nor laparoscopic recanalization can provide effective treatment because the tubes must not only be patent but also have their functions, such as peristaltic function, egg collection function and embryo transport function. The only solution is to use modern fertility techniques.
Modern fertility techniques mainly refer to in vitro fertilization and embryo transfer and its derivatives, which use the most advanced means to remove the egg and sperm from the body and create an environment outside the body with the same conditions as the female fallopian tube, allowing the sperm and egg to complete the process of fertilization and development outside the body, and finally transferring the embryo into the body at the right time. It is an artificial assisted reproduction technique that helps some infertile couples to obtain pregnancy. The technique mainly includes: in vitro fertilization and embryo transfer (IVF-ET), intracytoplasmic single sperm microinjection (ICSI), gamete or congenital intrafallopian tube transfer, embryo freezing and thawing, and pre-implantation embryo genetic diagnosis.
In vitro fertilization and embryo transfer (IVF-ET) is mainly for female factor infertility and is indicated for
1. Gamete transport disorders caused by various factors in the female partner;
2. Ovulation disorders;
3. Endometriosis;
4.Low or weak spermatozoa in the male partner;
5, unexplained infertility;
6.Immune infertility.
Intracytoplasmic single sperm injection (ICSI) is mainly for male factor infertility and is indicated for
1.Severe oligospermia, weakness and teratogenesis;
2. irreversible obstructive azoospermia;
3. Sperm dysfunction (excluding those caused by genetic defects);
4.Immune infertility;
5.In vitro fertilization failure;
6.Sperm acrosome abnormalities;
7. Pre-implantation embryo genetic diagnosis is required.
It is because there are so many misconceptions in the treatment of infertility that many infertility patients do not receive effective treatment, so how exactly should the treatment be carried out. First of all, both husband and wife must reach a consensus and be able to cooperate with the treatment.
Dear infertility friends above I only gave you some simple and common examples, in real life there are many patients wandering and confused in different treatment misunderstandings, we as scientific workers in reproductive medicine, sincerely give you sincere advice, must come out from these treatment misunderstandings, only then your treatment can be reasonable and effective, can not spend unjust money, do not run unjust roads.
In order to realize your wishes, the Assisted Reproduction and Genetic Center of Shanxi Province was officially established on November 3 under the support and care of leaders at all levels, with advanced diagnostic and treatment equipment, highly sophisticated equipment for pregnancy assistance and highly qualified medical personnel. With the purpose of “giving you a complete home with excellent technology, quality service, first-class environment and equipment, and reasonable price”, the center provides a safest, most effective and reasonably priced way for many infertility patients.
In just ten days after the opening, a little life has been conceived inside the mother with the help of our assisted reproduction technology. We hope that more bright and healthy babies will be born in the near future with the help of our assisted reproduction technology. We hope to bring good news to all infertility patients.
As a long-time researcher in reproductive medicine, we advise all infertility patients that if you have had regular contraceptive-free sex for one year and have not yet conceived, you need to seek medical advice and must come to the clinic as soon as possible. After the age of 35, women’s fertility will be greatly reduced.
Both spouses should be seen at the same time, so that the problems of both parties can be detected and treated in a timely manner in order to shorten the time and reduce the cost. The first visit for the female partner should be scheduled one week before menstruation, and the first visit for the male partner should be scheduled 3-5 days before abstinence. Bring your previous medical records and test sheets when you come to the clinic to avoid unnecessary repeat examinations and to save on tests.