The causes of infertility vary between individuals, but ultimately result in a patient’s or couple’s inability to conceive a child. Infertility is not uncommon, with one in six to one in seven couples in the UK affected (www.hfea.gov.uk).
After 35, a woman is half as fertile as she was when she was 25
Common causes of infertility include infrequent ovulation, which may be caused by polycystic ovary syndrome, being under or over weight, or simply a woman’s age, which can affect the regularity and quality of eggs available for fertilisation. A woman may also have a problem with her fallopian tubes, such as blockages or infection.
Increasingly, women are choosing to postpone starting a family until later life. While this may suit many modern careers and lifestyles, it introduces the risk that age can affect a woman’s chances of becoming pregnant. After 35, a woman is half as fertile as she was when she was 25 (Your Guide to Infertility, HFEA Directory of Clinics 2003/04), and this figure continues to decline the older she gets.
Causes of infertility can also reside in the man, and can include low sperm count, genetic conditions that affect the quality of sperm, or blockages in the vas deferens – the ducts which carry sperm from the testes to the urethra.
In some cases the reason for a couple’s infertility is unexplained which, while providing no answers for a couple trying for a baby, does indicate the intricate nature of conception and how much more is yet to be achieved in the field of reproductive medicine.
Treatment for infertility can typically require that a couple has been trying for a period of up to three years. But with age an increasing factor in infertility, you may refer to LFC at anytime, meaning that fertility treatment is available when you feel it most appropriate for your life. Our individualised approach means that our fertility treatment programmes will be as unique as your needs.