When we talk about infertility attention usually falls on treatment for women. However, infertility can affect men as well. The condition of infertility, can be described as the inability to become pregnant for a period of 1 year despite having unprotected, well-timed sexual intercourse. A low sperm count is one of the primary reasons for infertility in men.

Typically there should be fifteen million sperm per milliliter of semen. Low sperm count refers to the ejaculation of less than a normal amount of sperm in semen. This can also be termed as oligospermia. A complete absence of sperm in semen is known as azoospermia. Low sperm count does not mean that you cannot impregnate your partner but it reduces the chance of a successful conception. Thus, one of the most common ways to treat infertility caused by low sperm count is IVF.

IVF involves harvesting eggs from the woman s uterus and sperm from the male partner and combining them in a laboratory to form a zygote. When IVF is used to treat male infertility, a semen analysis is the first step. This helps determine the patient s sperm count, sperm motility, volume, pH levels, white blood cell levels etc.
The ejaculated semen is then processed so as to separate the sperm cells from the plasma. In this process sperm cells with higher motility are identified and segregated. These cells have a higher chance of fertilizing the egg.
Sperm cells are then injected into the harvested egg. Some techniques may require the injection of 50,000 or more sperm cells while others such as intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) can be effective with a single sperm cell. Once the egg is fertilized, it is allowed to develop for a few days in the laboratory. 
Two or three embryos are then selected to be reintroduced into the woman s uterus with the help of a catheter. The remaining fertilized embryos are preserved in an embryo bank in case the pregnancy is not successful. If these need to be used later, the woman does not have to go through the initial stages of IVF treatment to stimulate the follicles and harvest eggs from the ovaries.
When it comes to IVF, the success rates are very high. However, one of the most common side effects is the birth of twins or triplets. This is because multiple embryos are inserted into the uterus. The number of babies born then depends on the number of embryos that are implanted successfully.

Declining Sperm Count - How IVF Can Help Deal With It?

When a childless couple is not able to conceive, there are myriad paths that the couple may follow to obtain a solution. If IVF does not help the couple, then they can go in for surrogacy. In this method, another lady conceives, carries and gives birth to the baby created by the sperm and eggs of the intended parents. Let us find out more about surrogacy today.

Who can use it?
Surrogacy can be availed by couples who are not able to conceive due to many conclusive reasons including the absence of a womb or the malfunctioning of the same. Also, recurrent miscarriages can be one of the reasons. Further, a couple who has been through IVF or In Vitro Fertilisation implantation failure a number of times can opt for surrogacy.

How does it Work?
Full surrogacy, as it is known, is a process of implanting an embryo in a host body. This embryo is usually created using the egg and the sperm of the parents, or even a fertilised egg that has been donated by a donor, which is then fertilised using the sperm from the intended father. Also, this embryo may be created by using donor eggs and donor sperms. Partial surrogacy is also a method that may be used. When artificial insemination or intrauterine insemination (IUI) is used to create an embryo with the sperm from the intended father and the egg from the surrogate mother, then the process is known as partial surrogacy.

Chance of having a baby with surrogacy
The chance of having a baby with surrogacy depend on various factors. It depends on the ability of the surrogate to get pregnant, as well as her overall health. Before choosing a surrogate, it is important to put her through all the necessary tests to ascertain a good state of health. Further, the age of the egg donor is also a factor in such cases. The success of related procedures like IVF or IUI will also determine the chances of conception through this method. Furthermore, the quality of the elements used by the couple or the intended parents will also make a difference to the process and its efficacy. Yet, the most important factor includes the age of the woman whose egg is being used.

Difference between IVF and Surrogacy
In IVF, the eggs are gathered from the woman and the sperm is taken from her partner before an embryo is created and affixed in the uterus of the intended mother. In surrogacy, it is actually another woman who carries this lab-created embryo through methods like artificial insemination. The sperm may come from the father and the egg may be donated by someone else, in many cases involving full or partial surrogacy.

What is Surrogacy and how it is different from IVF

Women undergo menopause in their 40s and this is primarily known as the age after which they can't bear children in their wombs any more. The ability to develop and maintain a healthy pregnancy wanes as a woman crosses the age of 30, which according to research is the optimal time for a woman to become a mother.

The body undergoes changes as it gets older and women slowly start losing the perfect conditions for pregnancy. However, with the rise of the IVF treatment for infertility, a great number of people are choosing to embrace parenthood at a relatively advanced age. However, the question is, can the same IVF treatment prove effective for a woman after her menopause?

The answer is yes. There have been several instances where a woman past menopause has been implanted with a fertilized egg and has been able to conceive a healthy offspring from the same. However, such an IVF treatment is much more complex and can require a lot of external hormonal treatments on the side as well.

How can IVF help menopausal women?
Women, who have gone into menopause more than 6 months ago, require additional care to achieve pregnancy through IVF. The uterus is usually shrunken in such people and the endometrial lining also develops a resistance to estrogen. Several cycles of estrogen treatment are needed for such women to achieve a healthy pregnancy.

Most doctors suggest at least a couple of months of estrogen and progesterone treatment prior to taking the actual IVF treatment. However, there is no guarantee that the same will be effective in every case.

By any chance, if the menopausal woman chose to store her eggs prior to her menopause, she can get those eggs fertilized and implanted after menopause, using the IVF method, in order to achieve a healthy pregnancy. Through, this procedure, the woman can not only become pregnant after menopause but can also ensure that she is the biological mother of the child who would be born.

At any rate, it is best to undergo the IVF treatment before menopause, as this improves the chances of conceiving. The hormonal treatments are often easier and most women can completely forego the progesterone and estrogen supplementation in such a case. This will not only reduce the time required to complete the treatment but will also significantly reduce the cost that the parents have to bear.

Can IVF Help Menopausal Women Get Pregnant?

If you are trying to get pregnant through IVF, then you must be receiving a lot of suggestions from people close to you. You get suggestions about lifestyle changes, changes in your diet and much more. You will definitely get to hear about the Mediterranean diet in that list. This is one of the best diets that can ensure a healthy pregnancy.

There are so many studies conducted on the right diet for women to achieve a healthy pregnancy. A diet which is rich in vegetables, fruits, high fibre, whole grains and fish is good and the Mediterranean diet has just what a woman requires.

What is the Mediterranean diet?
The Mediterranean diet includes eating fresh fruits and vegetables. It also includes good fat, proteins and carbohydrates. When you are opting for IVF treatment, your overall lifestyle plays an important role such as the food you consume. You need to add more proteins to your diet as that can help in the production of eggs. You need to consume vegetable protein and not just animal protein.

How can the Mediterranean diet influence the results of an IVF?

Your body should be able to absorb the nutrients from the food that you eat. This will help in the production of quality sperm, egg and hormones. So, the Mediterranean diet can help you with that.
The Mediterranean diet helps manage blood sugar levels. Most women crave sweets or experience mood swings caused by hormones good food can help control these. When you are able to manage your blood sugar with the help of this diet, then you will be able to produce good quality or healthy eggs.
You will have to make sure that the food you are eating is protecting the cells from radical damage. When the cells in the body are damaged, then they will impact the quality of the sperm and egg produced. The Mediterranean diet is high in antioxidants that protect the cells.
The Mediterranean diet contains good fats. Fats from fish are very good as they boost the cell membranes. Inflammation is also prevented with the help of this good fat.
Apart from that, you will also find the Mediterranean diet useful in reducing obesity, heart diseases and diabetes.
Being overweight can also be one of the reasons for not getting pregnant. This diet will help you maintain a good weight. People with sleeping disorders are also able to overcome the problem. So, overall the Mediterranean diet is the best diet for maintaining overall health. Overall good health will guarantee a good and healthy pregnancy. 

Mediterranean Diet - How Can It Influence The Results After IVF?

Every one is aware that exercise offers several health benefits, both physically and mentally. A few are aware that exercise is indeed the key to a better, energetic and active sex life. There have been several studies that assert that regular exercise can have a positive impact on your sex life. Read on to get a deeper insight on how exercise can improve the quality of your sex life.

Exercise ensures genital arousal: It is a proven fact that exercise boosts blood flow. And sexual responses, especially in men, have a lot to do with the blood flow. When the sexual desire of a person gets turned on, the erectile tissues become filled with blood, resulting in arousal of the genitals. In order to experience complete genital arousal, for example preventing erectile dysfunction, a good blood circulation becomes necessary which can be achieved by exercise.

It naturally boosts the libido: Various studies have shown the perfect combination of the two sex hormones, estrogen, and testosterone, to be responsible for sexual desire. Yes, it is also the hormones that that regulates the majority of behavioural and physiological activities. As exercise helps in maintaining a perfect balance between the hormones, it naturally boosts the sex drive or the libido.

Exercise also improves performance: Studies have shown that those who exercise on a regular basis enjoy a better sex life than those who don't practice any physical activities at all. There's no denying of this scientifically proven fact that regular exercising improves the stamina or endurance of a person, increasing the heart and lung capacity. Exercise also allows the muscles in the body to function for longer periods of time which ensures longer and more satisfying sexual experience.

Exercise also helps to relax: Anxiety and stress often take a serious toll on a person s sex life, making it difficult to achieve an orgasm or set the mood right, resulting in complications of sexual arousal. Depression, anxiety, and stress also lead to sleep deprivation which also hampers the sex life, making one feel agitated and stressed all the time. However, exercise can be an effective solution to all these as it simply relaxes the mind and ensures a good night s sleep which boosts the sex life.

In case, you are experiencing any difficulty or issues regarding your sex life, make it a point to consult with a sexologist right away. Remember, the very purpose of exercising is not only to boost your sex life but also for improving your physical qualities. Therefore, without consulting a doctor, don t opt for any strenuous physical activity as it can deteriorate your overall health condition, resulting in decreased quality of your sex life.

Reasons Regular Exercise Is Necessary For Better Sex!

Factors that determine the success of your IVF procedure

IVF or In Vitro Fertilization is a process wherein an egg is fertilized by a sperm in a laboratory dish to form the embryo (baby's first cell) which after growth in artificial medium in the lab is transferred into the uterus of women, In general, a blood sample is collected to determine whether you're pregnant or not about 10-14 days after the eggs are retrieved.

Coming to the success of the procedure, a number of factors are at play and these are:

The age at which you get pregnant

A factor that plays a role in influencing your chances of experiencing success in your IVF procedure is the age at which you opt for this procedure. The lower your age, the chances that you may get pregnant and deliver a healthy child using your own eggs witness an increase. On the other hand, if you're aged 41 and above, or your egg reserve is very low donor eggs are the most preferred option as they help to increase your prospects of meeting a success.

Lifestyle habits

Certain lifestyle factors can significantly affect your prospects of getting pregnant through this route. Smoking can reduce your prospect of success using this procedure by about 50%. It can cause you to have lesser number of eggs retrieved during the procedure while increasing instances of miscarriages. Likewise, obesity, alcohol use, consumption of excessive caffeine and drugs can adversely affect your chances of getting pregnant using IVF.

Cause of Infertility

If your supply of eggs is normal, success rate using IVF is high. Women who suffer from the problem of endometriosis experience lesser chances of getting pregnant than women who have unexplained fertility.

Reproductive history

IVF success rate chances are higher if you've delivered a baby previously using IVF.

Embryo status

Embryos that are better developed with good grade stand a higher chance of experiencing success than less developed embryos. More importantly, not every embryo is able to survive the development process.



What are the factors that determine the success of your IVF procedure?

Don't wait any longer, manage your Egg Donor Program online with a Lybrate doctor today

Consult for Egg Donor Program - Online and Easy!

FilterClear All

COMMON SPECIALITIES

COMMON ISSUES