Infertility primarily refers to the biological inability of a person, male or female to contribute to conception. There are many biological causes of infertility, including some that medical intervention can treat.
According to World Health Organisation (WHO), infertility is the inability to conceive a child. A couple may be considered infertile if, after two years of regular sexual intercourse without contraception, the woman has not become pregnant (and there is no other reason, such as breastfeeding or postpartum amenorrhoea).
Primary infertility is infertility in a couple who have never had a child. Secondary infertility is failure to conceive following a previous pregnancy. Infertility may be caused by infection in the man or woman, but often there is no obvious underlying cause.
However in Nigeria, women are commonly regarded as those who suffer from infertility alone, men excluded. This is why when there is no cry of a baby in the family, all eyes and fingers looks and points her. In any given year, about 15 percent of couples across the country who are trying to conceive are infertile, which could be from either of the parties involved, husband or wife.
Among all cases of infertility in developed countries, it was deduced by the medical practitioners that about 8 percent can be traced to male factors, 37 percent can be traced to female factors, 35 percent can be traced to factors in both the male and female partners, and 5 percent cannot be traced to obvious factors in either partner.
According to researchers, men with infertility in the past had few options because there was limited information about causes and even less information about successful treatment. However, new tests have made it possible to determine the causes of male infertility and treatments, and assisted reproductive techniques (ART) offer hope to many couples.
Symptoms of male infertility
Fertility symptoms in men can be indistinct unlike women. It has the tendency go unnoticed until pregnancy is attempted. Symptoms depend on what is causing the infertility. They may include:
•Changes in hair growth
•Changes in sexual desire
•Low sperm count
•Pain, lump, or swelling in the testicles
•Problems with sexual function (erection and ejaculation)
• Small, firm testes
Causes of Infertility in Male
For a man to be fertile, he needs normal functioning of the hypothalamus and pituitary gland (hormone-producing glands in the brain), and the testes. Therefore, a variety of conditions can lead to infertility.
Male infertility has many causes, from hormonal imbalances, to physical problems, to psychological and/or behavioral problems. Moreover, fertility reflects a man’s overall health. Men who live a healthy lifestyle are more likely to produce healthy sperm.
The following list highlights some lifestyle choices that negatively impact male fertility–it is not all-inclusive:
➢Smoking significantly decreases both sperm count and sperm cell motility.
➢Prolonged use of marijuana and other recreational drugs.
➢Chronic alcohol abuse.
➢Anabolic steroid use–causes testicular shrinkage and infertility.
➢Overly intense exercise–produces high levels of adrenal steroid hormones which cause a testosterone deficiency resulting in infertility.
➢Inadequate vitamin C and Zinc in the diet.
➢Tight underwear–increases scrotal temperature which results in decreased sperm production.
➢Exposure to environmental hazards and toxins such as pesticides, lead, paint, radiation, radioactive
substances, mercury, benzene, boron, and heavy metals
➢Malnutrition and anemia.
➢Excessive stress!
➢30 to 40 percent of cases are due to problems in the testes (of which about 15 to 25 percent are due to genetic causes).
➢10 to 20 percent of infertility is due to a blockage in the pathway that sperm use to exit the testes during ejaculation; this can be caused by prior infection.
➢1 to 2 percent of cases are due to conditions of the pituitary gland or hypothalamus
➢40 to 50 percent of cases have no identifiable cause, even after an evaluation.
Modifying these behaviors can improve a man’s fertility and should be considered when a couple is trying to achieve pregnancy.
Nevertheless, seeking for medical advice would be much helpful, should you have been trying to get pregnant without success for a year, see your health care provider. A sperm analysis can be done to check a man’s sperm count and the overall health of the sperm.
Your doctor may refer you to a reproductive endocrinologist. That is a doctor who specializes in infertility. You will be asked questions about your infertility symptoms and medical history.
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