The responsibility to carry out a pregnancy plan does not merely lies in the woman, but also the man. Thus, when it comes to infertility, both parts should be evaluated. Statistic numbers regarding infertility in developed countries show that 37% are female infertility factors, while only 8% are male infertility factors. It is no wonder that the suspicion for not being able to get pregnant is more likely to be addressed to women.

An infertility cure plan for women depends on the underlying cause. Most of the cases around 85% - 90% can be cured using low technology procedures like medicine administration and surgery procedures. While only a small portion of infertility cases around 3% should be treated using more advanced technology such as In Vitro Fertilization (IVF).

Fertility medicines

Ovulation disorders accounts for 25% of infertility cases in women. The usual first line cure for such condition is the administration of medicines. The success rate of using medicines to fix this ovulation problem is around 80%.

Clomid (clomiphene citrate) is the common drug of choice to cure fertility. The success rate of couples who take Clomid to get pregnant is around 40% - 45% within a period of six cycles. Arimidex (anastrozole) and Femara (letrozole) are also used as fertility inducers with a similar success rate shown by Clomid.

Gonadotropin hormones which include LH (luteinic hormone or lutropin), FSH (follicle stimulating hormone or follitropin) and hCG (human chorionic gonadotropins) are the second line cure after Clomid fails or when the pituitary gland fails to produce those hormones. Gonadotropins are also used to support IVF cycles.

Surgical Infertility Treatment

Other prominent causes of infertility are Fallopian tubes problem and disorders of the pelvic and abdominal lining which account around 35% of infertility cases in women. The diagnosis is usually established through a hysterosalpingogram (HSG) which can indicate any blockage in the tube caused by endometriosis.

If there is a blockage shown by the HSG, the surgeon may perform a laparoscopy (a surgical procedure in the abdominal or pelvic area to through a small incision to explore the inner site of the abdomen by the aid of a camera) to make an evaluation of the condition and the possibility of fixing the problem.

If the surgeon concludes that removing the blockage and the scarring of tissues is impossible he may then recommend an IVF

Intra Uterine Insemination (IUI)

IUI also refers to artificial insemination where specially washed sperm is placed directly into the uterus. This procedure is usually performed in cases of male infertility, woman’s cervical mucus problems or in unexplained infertility cases. However, the success rate is considered low and only leaves it to its cost advantage over IVF which is much cheaper than IVF

IVF and ART

ART or Assisted Reproductive Technologies are more advanced technologies to cure infertility by managing the ova and embryos. ART includes IVF (In Vitro Fertilization), GIFT (Gamete Intra Fallopian Transfer) and ZIFT (Zygote Intra Fallopian Transfer). IVF is used in the majority of infertility cases and is most common compared to GIFT and ZIFT. GiIFT is performed in about 2% of cases, while ZIFT only 1.5%

The principle of IVF is to stimulate the production of eggs by the ovaries, which will then be taken out from the ovary and kept together with sperm in a medium that contains special nutrients. It will be kept and monitored until fertilization occurs. Then one embryo will be picked and placed into the uterus of the woman.

It seems that getting pregnant is not always easy and simple. I am sure that many women do not want to take all those course of action. But, a strong will and motivation is needed to support the courage when struggling to get pregnant and make a dream comes true.