Can’t Get Pregnant? Understanding Sterility vs Infertility

What is Behind Your Pregnancy Woes?

Once a couple decides to embark on the journey of starting a family, the process is expected to be exciting, fun, and natural. Yet, for many, this is not the case. Despite consistently trying, some couples cannot get pregnant. Failure to get pregnant can be emotionally challenging and place a strain on relationships. Taking a closer look at the issue, the reason for difficulties getting pregnant can be due to sterility or infertility. Both conditions are related but impact fertility in different ways. A doctor or reproductive specialist can help couples navigate these issues and recommend the best solution for increasing the chances of pregnancy.

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Get real on sterility

When someone is sterile, there is a physical or anatomical inability to conceive a child. Sterility occurs when there is permanent damage, a physical condition, or an absence of reproductive organs. Some men and women are born without properly functioning reproductive organs. For instance, sterile women can have a congenital absence of the uterus or ovaries, while men can have an absence of testes. Surgical removal of reproductive organs, such as a hysterectomy, bilateral oophorectomy, or vasectomy, leads to sterility. Exposure to certain chemicals, cancer treatments like chemotherapy, or severe autoimmune diseases can lead to permanent damage to the reproductive organs. Sterility is an extremely challenging issue for those hoping to get pregnant and often needs extensive medical intervention.

Is your challenge infertility?

Infertility speaks to the inability to get pregnant after at least 6-12 months of regular, unprotected sexual intercourse. Doctors refer to the 6-month mark as subfertility. From 12 months and beyond, the condition is considered infertility. People diagnosed with infertility have the reproductive organs capable of producing eggs and sperm. However, there is an underlying condition disrupting the natural conception process. Sometimes, infertility is temporary and easily identified, for instance, due to an underlying health condition. In other cases, the reasons are wide-ranging, potentially severe, or long-lasting. Infertility is also governed by factors such as age, hormone levels, medication, and lifestyle habits.

Unveiling sterility vs infertility

Couples struggling to get pregnant should see a doctor immediately. A thorough evaluation can confirm if someone is sterile or infertile. This information will determine the appropriate treatment or options. Sterility is a generally permanent condition. An individual or couple is often aware of the sterility due to a past surgical procedure. There are cases, however, where testing reveals one or both individuals are sterile. Infertility is a treatable condition through hormone medication, surgery, or lifestyle changes. Testing can point to the potential reasons the couple may be infertile. Once these are addressed, fertility increases. Infertile couples also have access to assisted reproductive technology (ART), a series of medical techniques that create conditions for pregnancy.

What are your next steps for sterility?

The doctor or fertility team will explore the options based on the diagnosis. Sterility is generally permanent or irreversible. In some cases, the doctor can attempt to reverse a vasectomy or tubal ligation, which can improve pregnancy. If a partner is sterile, surrogacy is an option if the other partner can provide healthy sperm or eggs. With surrogacy, another woman carries the child on behalf of the couple. In severe cases, a pregnancy that achieves a biological link is not possible. Donor embryos, along with surrogacy or adoption, are the best course of action. If there is a potential risk of sterility, such as chemotherapy or radiation therapy, couples can save eggs or sperm through cryopreservation and have children at a later stage.

Achieving pregnancy through infertility treatment

Infertility is a wide-ranging challenge, with many factors contributing to the issue. Many potential treatments produce results. For instance, lifestyle changes, such as weight loss, quitting smoking or alcohol use, may be enough to improve hormone function. Treating an underlying condition, such as endometriosis or a fallopian tube blockage, can improve fertility. If these fail, ART techniques like in vitro fertilization (IVF) can provide fantastic results. By extracting and combining sperm and eggs, a fertility clinic can produce multiple viable embryos. A viable embryo can be implanted into the woman's uterus to increase the chances of pregnancy. IVF is a multi-step process that takes time but has excellent results for infertile individuals. Should IVF fail, there are further options, such as intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), preimplantation genetic testing (PGT), and surrogacy.

Do not give up hope

A doctor can outline the many treatment options for individuals struggling with pregnancy. The goal is to get an early assessment to confirm sterility or infertility. Sterility is often a permanent state with limited options, which are only successful based on the couple's unique circumstances. Infertility has a wider range of treatment options. However, factors like age can influence success rates. Discovering sterility or infertility can be emotionally challenging. The appropriate emotional support is vital while navigating these conditions. With the right effort and mindset, getting pregnant or starting a family is possible.

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For added convenience download our app for Android or iPhone. RxLocal is an easy-to-use app that allows pharmacy customers to manage their entire family’s prescriptions, communicate with the pharmacy via secure messages, order refills, set medication reminders and find pharmacy location information.

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