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“To build a house, plant a tree and have a son” – for years, these were the goals of successive generations of men. Now, only those men who can afford it decide to build a house, and it is no longer fashionable to plant trees. As a result, the only thing that remained from the three attributes of masculinity is fatherhood. However, parenthood becomes a difficult topic when attempts to conceive fail.
Fertility problems in men
If you are planning to start a family, but you have not been trying for a baby with your partner, for obvious reasons you cannot be certain that your sperm has adequate parameters. Nonetheless, you probably assume that, if need be, it will serve its purpose – such an approach is typical of almost all men. Men’s confidence about their masculinity usually weakens only when their planned and conscious attempts to conceive fail.
Why does sex on fertile days not result in a pregnancy? There may be several reasons for this, both on the part of a woman and on the part of a man. If a woman is perfectly healthy and does not suffer from serious stress, it is her partner that may be infertile.
The quality of semen may deteriorate as a result of, among others, an unhealthy lifestyle. Stimulants, stress, lack of exercise, unhealthy diet resulting in obesity or malnutrition as well as health problems (genetic disorders, cancer, inflammation of testicles, epididymides or the prostate, congenital defects of the genital tract) are only some causes of fertility problems. The quality of semen may also deteriorate as a result of exposure to harmful environmental factors, such as pesticides and phthalates. Moreover, one other factor that may negatively affect the quality of sperm are supplements containing hormones which stimulate muscle growth. Therefore, men are recommended not to take them when trying for a baby.
Does infertility always prevent a man from becoming a father?
Lower quality of semen will not necessarily prevent you from becoming a parent. It is possible for men who have a low sperm count or whose sperm are slower to become a father, but, as we make our own luck, it is often necessary for them to undergo in vitro fertilization in order to have a child.
In vitro fertilization as an effective method which allows couples with fertility problems to have a child
In vitro fertilization is the fusion of sperm and egg under laboratory conditions, i.e. outside a woman’s body. One indication for IVF treatment are fertility problems – both in women and in men.
One of the fertilization techniques that improves chances of pregnancy in the case of male infertility is the IMSI method. It consists in injecting selected sperm into an egg cell.
The IMSI procedure is preceded by a detailed analysis of the semen of a patient – an experienced embryologist examines sperm magnified over 6 thousand times to assess their morphology and to distinguish damaged sperm from the sperm that offer a chance of achieving a normal pregnancy. In the case of classic diagnostic methods, which involve examining sperm at low magnification, it may sometimes seem that there are no sperm in the semen that would be suitable for fertilization, and a healthy sperm cell is found only after the semen is examined at high magnification. In practice, it means that the IMSI procedure offers a chance of parenthood even to those men whose semen is of really low quality.
Statistical data show how effective in vitro fertilization is – while the average success rate of in vitro fertilization in Poland is 35.2%, in vitro fertilization at InviMed clinics is successful already after the first attempt in 43% of couples. This is the average success rate for all age groups. It is worth stressing that patients’ biological material is monitored at every stage of the procedure under the “double checking” system (it is checked by two independent persons) so as to avoid any misidentification.
Test yourself
Semen testing does not take long and is painless. You will get your results within 4 business days. It is worth testing your semen if you have been trying for a baby for a year with no success.
