Infertility



What is Infertility?

Infertility refers to the inability to get pregnant after 12 months of regular unprotected sex. In cases where the woman is 35 years or older, the time period reduces to 6 months. Women who can conceive but have trouble staying pregnant may also be referred to as infertile. The medical dictionary definition of infertility is, "the diminished or absent ability to produce offspring; in either the male or the female, not as irreversible as sterility."

According to statistics, nearly 15% of couples in the US suffer from infertility. While many of the cases are treatable, in some cases treatments may prove ineffective. The main reason for this is that there is no one single case for infertility. It could either be a combination of several factors or the cause of infertility could remain unknown.


References
  1. W Weidner, G.M Colpi, T.B Hargreave, G.K Papp, J.M Pomerol, The EAU Working Group on Male Infertility, EAU Guidelines on Male Infertility, European Urology, Volume 42, Issue 4, October 2002, Pages 313-322, ISSN 0302-2838, 10.1016/S0302-283
  2. Petra De Sutter, Rational diagnosis and treatment in infertility, Best Practice & Research Clinical Obstetrics & Gynaecology, Volume 20, Issue 5, October 2006, Pages 647-664, ISSN 1521-6934, 10.1016/j.bpobgyn.2006.04.005.
  3. Vicki Denson, Diagnosis and Management of Infertility, The Journal for Nurse Practitioners, Volume 2, Issue 6, June 2006, Pages 380-386, ISSN 1555-4155, 10.1016/j.nurpra.2006.03.019.