Infertility Specialists

Associated Urologists of North Carolina

Urologists located in Apex, Cary, Clayton, Dunn, Raleigh & Wake Forest, NC

Starting a family is one of the most thrilling times in your life, but if after a year of trying your partner still isn’t pregnant, you might need treatment for infertility. At Associated Urologists of North Carolina, the team of board-certified urologists has considerable experience in finding the cause of infertility and remedying the problem. They offer infertility services at their seven convenient locations in Apex, Cary, Clayton, Dunn, Raleigh, and Wake Forest, North Carolina. Whatever the reason for your infertility, the practice can help. Call today to schedule a consultation.

Infertility Q & A

What is Infertility?

Infertility means being unable to conceive when you’ve been trying for a year or more. Most healthy couples who are having sex regularly conceive within around six months. If you’ve been trying for 12 months without any success, it could indicate there’s a fertility problem with one or both partners.

Male infertility accounts for around one-third of cases where a couple is having difficulties conceiving. The problem is usually due to sperm production or quality, or the effectiveness of sperm delivery. Numerous factors can affect the creation and delivery of sperm.

What Can Cause Male Infertility?

Sperm disorders are the most common problem affecting male fertility. Sperm might not grow properly and remain undeveloped, be an odd shape, or not move the way they should. You could have a very low sperm count (oligospermia) or not have any sperm at all (azoospermia).

These problems might be genetic, or could be due to lifestyle choices in some instances. Smoking and drinking too much alcohol can affect sperm production, for example. Long-term illnesses like kidney failure and having mumps when you were a child can also reduce your sperm count.

In some men, infertility is due to a chromosomal abnormality or a hormonal issue like having low testosterone levels. Blockages that prevent sperm from getting out of your body can also produce a low or zero sperm count.

Other conditions that can cause male infertility include:

Varicoceles (swollen veins in the scrotum)
Retrograde ejaculation
Immunologic infertility

Medications can cause infertility sometimes by altering the production and delivery of sperm. If you’re taking medication for arthritis, depression, digestive problems, infections, high blood pressure, or cancer, you should discuss this with your urologist at Associated Urologists of North Carolina.

How is Infertility Treated?

Your urologist can successfully treat many of the causes of male infertility. First, they need to find out why you’re having problems. This involves a consultation and physical exam, as well as tests like:

Semen analysis
Transrectal ultrasound
Testicular biopsy
Hormonal profile

Once your urologist knows what’s causing your infertility, they can prescribe the appropriate treatment. Treatments could include:

Hormone replacement
Varicocelectomy
Microsurgical vasovasostomy
Vasoepididymostomy
Transurethral resection of the ejaculatory duct (TURED)

In some cases, infertility happens for no apparent reason. It’s always worth going back to basics and looking at lifestyle issues like diet, exercise, bad habits, and stress to see if you could make changes. You should also be aiming to have intercourse at your partner’s most fertile time of the month, which you can track using an ovulation chart.

If you’re still having problems conceiving, there are assisted reproductive techniques available such as:

Intrauterine insemination (IUI)
In vitro fertilization (IVF)
Intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI)
Testicular sperm extraction (TESE)
Testicular fine needle aspiration (TFNA)
Percutaneous epididymal sperm aspiration (PESA)
Microsurgical epididymal sperm aspiration (MESA)

To find out more, call Associated Urologists of North Carolina today.