No matter what is causing infertility, there are answers
Female infertility is caused by conditions that affect the female partner and create a barrier to pregnancy. To get pregnant, certain conditions must be met. If one of these conditions is not met, then pregnancy cannot take place.
Sometimes with female infertility, conception occurs yet the pregnancy ends in a miscarriage.
Common causes of female infertility
Ovulation problems usually cause female infertility. Ovulation dysfunction reduces the chances of an egg being fertilized. Common signs of ovulation problems with female infertility may be skipped or absent periods. Ovulation problems may include:
- Primary ovarian insufficiency (POI) – the ovaries stop functioning before a natural menopause
- Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) – the ovaries do not release a healthy egg or the ovaries don’t release an egg regularly. PCOS is a leading cause of female fertility problems because of lack of ovulation
Other problems linked to female fertility include:
- Problems with the uterus
- Uterine fibroids (noncancerous growths)
- Blocked tubes from endometriosis, surgery, or pelvic inflammatory disease (PID)
Are you at risk of female infertility?
Different risk factors put a you at a higher chance of female infertility, including:
- Age (female fertility declines after age 35 and dramatically declines after age 40)
- Extreme dieting or poor diet
- Being overweight or underweight
- Cigarette smoking, drugs, and alcohol
- High caffeine intake
- Health problems and medications
- Environmental toxins
- Genetic conditions
- Sexually transmitted diseases
In most cases of female infertility, your doctor can do a fertility workup. Through a physical examination and tests, doctors may determine the problem. Then, treatment with medications, surgery or high-tech procedures may help you get pregnant.
Setting the stage for pregnancy
To understand more about female infertility, let’s look at how the process works. There are four requirements to get pregnant:
l. A sperm capable of fertilizing an egg (male factor)
2. An egg capable of being fertilized (ovulation)
3. Open passage to allow the egg and sperm to meet (tuboperitoneal disease)
4. A uterus to nurture the developing pregnancy (uterine factors)
Your doctor can evaluate and treat these problems to increase your chances of having a healthy baby.
Some infertility problems are preventable
Some causes of female infertility cannot be changed, such as your age, family history, or history of miscarriage. Yet other causes of female infertility are preventable.
You can prevent sexually transmitted diseases that can lead to pelvic inflammatory disease. Pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) is an infection or inflammation that can permanently scar the reproductive tract (the uterus, ovaries, fallopian tubes) and lead to female infertility.
PID is one of the most common illnesses that affect female fertility today. PID is most prevalent among young women under age 25 who have had more than one sex partner. It’s also more common in women who have had STDs and a prior case of PID.
Other causes of female infertility, such as hormonal imbalances with PCOS may not be completely prevented. Yet newer medications and diets are helping many women with PCOS to get pregnant and have families.
Some types of female infertility can be surgically treated. Tubal problems and endometriosis are the most common types that can be treated by surgery.
Knowledge is power
If you’ve been told you have female infertility, much of your anxiety may stem from lack of knowledge. Not only are you frightened from the inability to conceive, but you may be uneasy about the future of your family.
No matter what is causing infertility, there are answers. Talk with your fertility specialist. In many cases, planning ahead and preventing female fertility problems early on can help set the stage for a healthy pregnancy.
Sources: NIH: Infertility/Fertility RESOLVE: Frequency Asked Questions about Infertility WomensHealth.gov: Infertility Rasch, V. Cigarette, alcohol, and caffeine consumption: risk factors for spontaneous abortion. Acta Obstet Gynecol Scand 2003; 82:182
