Back to Basics

Ah, the end of summer. How sad that always made me as a little kid. It meant loading up our station wagon and driving back from Cape Cod after spending the whole summer in West Dennis. It meant no more mini-golf and no more trips to the beach and of course, the beginning of a new school year. Fall was not a favorite of mine as it meant classes and homework and the approach of winter. But times change and now I relish the change in the weather, especially here in DC where August is so hot and humid (pretty much like June and July!). And since I am no longer in school the feeling of dread in the pit of my stomach is not a problem…

So what does this have to do with infertility? Nothing. Well, almost nothing. I just think that with the beginning of a new academic year upon us we should step back and address some basics since we had covered some pretty specific issues in reproductive medicine. So here we go with some of the basic questions from 100 Questions and Answers about Infertility…


2. What is infertility?

Approximately 80% to 85% of couples who are trying to become pregnant will successfully conceive within a year. Thus infertility is commonly defined as the inability to achieve a pregnancy within 12 months of unprotected intercourse. However, certain patients may have recognized factors that would lead to problems conceiving; for them, the 12-month period of waiting would make no sense. Common examples of such women include those who have extremely irregular periods, a history of severe endometriosis, a history of previous tubal pregnancies, or other anatomical factors that would clearly lead to diminished fertility. Such couples are encouraged to seek evaluation for infertility if the woman is older than age 35 and they have been attempting pregnancy for a total of 6 months without success. Another problem related to reproduction is recurrent pregnancy loss. Many women can readily conceive, only to suffer repeated pregnancy losses. These women represent a special subset of those who are unable to successfully reproduce and should be evaluated by a medical professional.