Medical Clues to Female Fertility

What's The Problem?

When a woman wants to conceive and is having difficulty, generally the first thing she does (after crying) is to go on a search for the cause.  With the help of a trained and caring professional, it is possible to uncover the cause of the problem and address it.

There are many different medical situations which can affect conception and which are peculiar to women - and some which can affect both men and women in their efforts to become pregnant.  Sexually transmitted diseases can have a very profound effect upon a woman's ability to conceive.  Two of the most common ones, chlamydia and gonorrhea, are also primary causes for pelvic inflammatory disease which can have devastating effects on the reproductive organs of a woman.  By getting regular testing and early treatment if an STD is found, these consequences can be avoided.

STDs and Fertility

Chlamydia and gonorrhea are bacterial infections caused by having sex with an infected person.  Because the symptoms of these diseases are often either absent or mild, many women do nothing about them until they are either manifesting signs of some sort, or the disease has progressed to pelvic inflammatory disease.  PID is caused by the body overreacting to infection.  The bacteria from the STD infection travel up through the uterus and into the fallopian tubes.  As the immune system battles the bacteria, inflammation and scarring result and while this scarring may effectively corner the disease, it does so with scar tissue which can block the fallopian tubes, preventing the sperm from reaching the egg for fertilization.  Or, if the sperm does reach the egg and fertilization takes place, the egg is unable to travel back to the uterus.  The result can be an ectopic pregnancy, or a pregnancy outside of the uterus, which can sometimes become fatal.  PID can be treated with antibiotics to address the inflammation and infection; however, the scarring is another matter.

Scarring and Surgery

There are cases where adhesions inside the abdominal cavity can be surgically removed and fertility can be restored.  It does depend upon how severe the scarring is and how extensive the damage is to the reproductive organs.  Scar tissue can be the result of previous surgery for ruptured appendix, cesarean section, ectopic pregnancy, bowel repair or the removal of an ovarian cyst.  The inflexible scar tissue which restricts the movement of the organs can be clipped and removed, thus providing restored movement and an opportunity for normal conception.