Infertility Treatments

Many couples find themselves seeking infertility treatments because they have not been able to get pregnant within a reasonable amount of time on their own, usually considered to be a year or more of unprotected sex. Infertility treatments have become more progressive over past years, and have resulted in successful outcomes for couples desiring to have children. It may take more than one attempt in many cases, which can run into tens of thousands of dollars for some couples, if insurance coverage is not available. Only a handful of states across the nation require health insurance carriers to cover infertility treatments, leaving couples who want to have a baby having to finance the whole expense. For such as in vitro fertilization (IVF) or gamete intra-fallopian transfer (GIFT), this could be as much as $8–10,000 each attempt. Some couples even take out second mortgages on their homes to provide the funds to pay for infertility treatments.

When couples first decide to consult a professional for infertility treatment, there are many questions that they want answers to right away; they want to know who has the problem. These concerns can usually be addressed quite easily with a few simple tests. Women may simply have a hormone imbalance that affects her chances of getting pregnant, which can easily checked and treated. The first thing checked from the male partner is the sperm assay, to make sure that enough are being produced. If the count is low the chance of the sperm penetrating the egg is decreased. Further evaluation of both partners will be needed if nothing is found with the initial testing, at which time the couple will probably be referred to an infertility specialist. Treatment for infertility does not have to involve complicated technical procedures, and in many cases can be resolved with hormone treatments and/or surgery.

If couples do proceed with more extensive infertility treatment, they should take the time to research the infertility