Causes of Infertility in Males
Treatments for male factor infertility will be influenced by at least three important factors:
- Cause of infertility, if identifiable
- Severity of the sperm defect
- Age of the female partner
Mild male factor, unexplained cause: Intrauterine insemination (IUI): Concentrated sperm are placed directly into the uterine cavity, thus eliminating their passage through the vagina and cervix.
Recent data suggest that the pregnancy success rates following IUI in cases of mild male factor or unexplained infertility are reported to be approximately 5% per insemination cycle. This rate can be improved to about 9% per cycle if the female partner is induced to "super-ovulate" with injectable fertility medications such as Gonal-F. It is important to note that the average age of the female patients in the research study that reported these results was 32.4 years of age. Rates for success would likely decrease as the age of the female partner increases. Most authorities consider (IUI) to be ineffective in cases of severe male infertility. The ideal treatment, when surgical and medical management fails to improve sperm function, is in vitro fertilization and embryo transfer (IVF/ET), usually accompanied by Intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI).
