What Treatment Options Are Available for Male Infertility?

It can be disheartening to find out that you're infertile, especially when you thought that everything was normal. There are many reasons why a man is not able to contribute to the conception process and, consequently, there are options that can assist with male infertility.

Here are the treatment options available for male infertility.

1. Vasectomy Reversal
In recent years many men are opting to have children after a vasectomy. Luckily, a vasectomy is not necessarily a permanent issue anymore. It can be reversed. It takes a simple surgical procedure that restores the flow of sperm. There are certain factors that affect the success rates of vasectomy reversals such as your age, the presence of antisperm antibodies, time elapsed since the vasectomy and the age of the woman. Although this procedure is an option it is generally not encourage.

2. Sperm Aspiration
This is a group of procedures which is used to get viable sperm from the man. The sperm is used with Intra Cytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI). This option is suitable for men who have severe types of male infertility. For example, if there is no sperm in their ejaculate, where sperm is dead or there is no motility. With this group of procedures there are four techniques that can be used to obtain the sperm. It is important to keep in mind that each technique is not suitable for everyone. These techniques are mentioned in the next four points.

3. Testicular Sperm Extraction
In this technique the fertility doctor removes a small piece of testicular tissue through a half inch skin incision. Sperm is liberated from the seminiferous tubules (where they are produced). This procedure can be performed in the doctor's surgery or the operating room and a mild sedation is recommended for comfort. The sperm harvested with this technique can be stored for later use.

4. Microsurgical Epididymal Sperm Aspiration
If you have a reproductive tract blockage then this technique is an option. During this technique an operating microscope is used to examine the tubules that contain sperm. The fluid containing the sperm is collected and the quality is examined. Thereafter it is taken to the IVF laboratory for use.

5.Testicular Sperm Aspiration
This technique uses a needle biopsy of the testicle. The procedure is performed under local anaesthesia in a doctor's surgery. The sperm is extracted through the testicle but the amount obtained can be low because the needle cuts a thin layer of the tissue. This procedure is usually quite successful and less invasive than other methods.