Molecular Infertility

Treatment
Bhawna Dhawan
Medical Biotechnology

What is infertility?

Infertility

means not being able to get

pregnant after one year or six months of
trying ; if a woman is 35 or older who can
get pregnant but are unable to stay pregnant
may also be infertile.

Infertility is not always a womans problem,
man can too have problems. About 1/3 of
infertility cases are caused by womens
problem, another 1/3 are due to men and
another 1/3 are mixture of both and
unknown problems.

Common Infertility reasons:

In Females
o. Ovulation problems
o. Hormonal problems
o. Scarred ovaries
o. Premature
menopause
o. Tubal infections
o. Immunological
problems
o. Endometriosis

In Males
o. Low sperm count
o. Poor sperm quality
o. Abnormal sperm
morphology
o. Hormonal imbalance
o. Genetic factors
o. Immunological
problems
o. Nutritional factors

Genetic Aspects of infertility

Various genetic factors influence the

abnomalities of reproductive system. It
may include chromosomal mutation ,
abnormalities in the genes , X- linked ; Ylinked disorders , mosaicism and various
epigenetic factors . Endocrine and
immunological factors are very much
responsible for genetic factors as they
control the gametogenesis and
spermatogenesis .

Infertility Treatments
There are many ways to treat infertility;
it can be through oral medicine , surgery ,
artificial insemination or by means of a
Assisted Reproductive Technology.
Treatments are done even by
combination of all these factors. Infertility
treatments can be of small or long
duration depending upon the type and
reason of infertility. These treatments are
both helpful and healthier for couples.

Assisted Reproductive Technology

Assisted reprodutive technology work for

the treatment of infertility. It helps the
infertile couples in order to fulfil their
dreams of getting their off-springs . ART
works by removing eggs from womans
body, then eggs are mixed with sperms to
make embryos. Then embryos are put back
in womans body . ART can be expensive
and time consuming but has allowed many
couples to have children. ART can be of
various types :

Intrauterine insemination

IUI is an infertility treatment that is often

called infertility insemination . In this
procedure, the women is injected with
specially prepared sperms. Sometimes
women is also treated with medicine that
stimulates ovulation before intrauterine
insemination.

IUI TREATMENT

In vitro fertilization

In vitro fertilization process is defined as

the process in which the egg is fertilised
outside by giving sperm outside the body.
This is done when all the treatments get
failed . There are various methods and
steps involved in this type of fertilisation.
There is use of test tubes, petridishes ,
beakers.

IVF ( in vitro fertilization)

In vitro fertilization treatment is given to

both females and males infertility. In females
this may overcome the problems of fallopian
tube . In males the problem of sperm quality
can be overcome by giving (ICSI)
Intracytoplasmic sperm injection. It has its
role when even the sperm count is low. In
vitro fertilization can play its role in women
who have crossed their menopause . In vitro
fertilization can be combined with
preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) in
order to overcome genetic disorders.

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GIFT / ZIFT

Gamete intrafallopian transfer and zygote

intrafallopian transfer are prefered
techniques over IVF as it works faster. In
ZIFT zygote are placed in fallopian tube
within 24 hours. In GIFT the sperm and egg
are mixed together and then implanted in
fallopian tube and by luck one of the egg get
fused. These are prefered more to IVF as its
success rate is high and these can be used
even when there is mild male infertility too.

Psychological treatment

Mostly psychological treatment is given by

counseling and marriage therapy . Men
are not much likely to seek psychological
help rather than woman but psychological
treatment is much important while
dealing with male infertility. A lot of men
think that there are numerous
disincentives to psychological treatment
rather than its potential benefits mostly
infertility linked to behavioral factors.

Success Rate..

Success rate depend and varies on many

factors. Some things that effect the
success rate of infertility treatment
includes success of ART , age factor ,
reason of infertility , some diseased
factors, some hormonal and
immunological related disorders also
effect the success rate.(write more)

Common and Ethical problems

The legal status of embryos fertilized in vitro

and not transfered in vivo.
Anti-abortion opposite to the destruction of
embryos not transferred in vivo.
High cost treatments are out of financial reach
for some couples .
Different religious opinions on infertility
And its treatment.
IVF results have lead to increase in multiple
births , provoking ethical analysis because of
link between multiple pregnancies, premature
birth, and a host of health problem.
ART is not possible for women suffering with
cancer.