Men’s infertility is a health issue that reduces the scope of a man to cause pregnancy in his female partner after regular unprotected intercourse for one year. It is estimated that 7% of males have infertility issues across the globe. Infertility brings frustration and stress. However, different treatment options are available for men’s infertility. Experts decide on treatment plans depending on the underlying cause of infertility. Manifestation of men’s infertility can occur due to the following reasons:
- Low sex drive reduces libido – often healthy lifestyle, proper diet, and supplements can be used to boost male libido.
- Erectile dysfunction or impotence- this physical condition causes sporadic erection or incapability to develop an erection.
- Low sperm count- lower sperm concentration in the semen sample decreases the chance of conceiving the female partner because of fertilization failure.
- Sperm motility – mobility of sperm in semen sample negatively affects the possibility of pregnancy. Sperm motility does not depend upon the sperm count which means increased sperm count does not indicate their viability.
- Testosterone levels – low levels of testosterone in the male may cause infertility.
In some cases, the precise reason for infertility is not detectable. However, doctors often recommend treatments or procedures that are often effective to help in conception. Following are some male infertility treatment options:
- Surgery- Surgical intervention can correct a varicocele or an obstructed vas deferens. The enlargement of veins within the skinny sack where the testicles are sited is clinically termed a varicocele. An obstructed vas deferens is a condition in which one or both ejaculatory ducts get obstructed. Thus, semen efflux is not possible through the duct and leads to male infertility.
- Surgery can also reverse the prior vasectomies. Surgery is also recommended treatment for direct sperm retrieval from testicles or epididymis in case of absenteeism of sperm in semen samples after ejaculation.
- Treating infections – Antibiotic treatment often cures the reproductive tract infection, but may not help to restore infertility for every case.
- Treatments for sexual intercourse difficulties – The doctor may prescribe medicine or counseling or both to improve fertility in certain difficulties during intercourse like premature ejaculation or erectile dysfunction.
- Hormone treatments and medications- Low levels of certain hormones or physiological disorder that causes hormonal imbalance require hormone replacement treatment to overcome the high or low levels of certain hormones or problems with the way the body uses hormones.
- Assisted reproductive technology (ART) – Medical advancement brings a variety of ART treatment options. These include sperm collection through normal ejaculation, surgical extraction, or involving donor individuals. The doctor decides the treatment plan depending on the individual patient’s condition and the couple’s preference. Then, the collected sperm is inserted into the female genital tract through clinical intervention; or use other ART methods like in vitro fertilization (IVF) or intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI).
