Causes of infertility in men and women

The causes of infertility in men are most often associated with an unhealthy lifestyle or genetic abnormalities. Childlessness destroys families, people's plans for life, leads to side diseases. Infertility may be imaginary, caused by a temporary effect on spermatozoa and the vas deferens of the genitourinary system. Also, infertility is often permanent, often caused by genetic problems and serious diseases of the reproductive system and sperm division.

Causes of male infertility

At the moment, doctors distinguish several classes of diseases that lead to infertility. Spermatozoa are completely renewed in 72 days. This means that 72 days after stopping alcohol, nicotine and drugs, a man is likely to have a completely healthy set of germ cells.

Sperms damaged by alcohol or nicotine contain a defective genetic code, which will greatly affect the health of the unborn child. The sperm becomes insufficiently active to penetrate the uterus and fertilize the egg.

Diseases like varicocele or testicular dissection usually cause complete infertility. The testicles lose the ability to produce sperm, which makes the man infertile. In addition, in men, the production of luteinizing hormone, which stimulates the synthesis of testosterone, may be disrupted.

These problems are noticeable externally - the voice becomes thinner, facial hair decreases, there may be a strong development of subcutaneous fat according to the female type - on the hips, sides, buttocks. In addition, the hormonal function of the endocrine glands is disrupted - the production of triiodothyronine and tyrosine suffers.

Infertility can also be caused by genetic diseases. This is due to genetic mutations while still in the womb. With problems of the genitourinary tract or insufficient secretion of prostatic juice, a man is only partially infertile - sperm can be removed from the testicle and the woman can be fertilized in vitro.

Doctors identify the following main causes of male infertility:

Prostatitis

Prostatitis is called inflammation in the prostate gland. One of the consequences of inflammation in any tissue and organ is the loss of function. The prostate gland is an exclusively male organ, located anterior to the rectum, at a level of 5-10 centimeters from the anus.

The prostate produces prostatic juice - a fluid that is necessary for the movement of sperm. The vagina has an acidic environment, which is detrimental to germ cells. It is part of the immune system that protects the female reproductive organs. Prostatic juice has the necessary set of enzymes. These enzymes allow sperm to move most actively through the vagina to the uterus. Fertilization takes place there. Prostatic juice helps sperm to more easily pass into the egg, greatly facilitating the process of fertilization.

With prostatitis, an extremely small amount of prostatic juice is produced - this is the cause of infertility.

Infertility with prostatitis is a temporary phenomenon - with successful therapy, sexual function is quickly restored, providing a sufficient motor channel for spermatozoa. Often the speed of recovery is affected by how quickly the therapy began, because neglected prostatitis often leads to cancerous tumors.

Urinary tract infections

Infections often cause infertility in men and women. Infections can be transferred even in childhood - for example, mumps. They can also be obtained in adulthood, for example, through sexual contact (chlamydia, gonorrhea or gonococcus bacteria).

Mumps affects the glands of the body. The testicles are also inherently a gland that produces sperm. Infertility can be caused by a type of mumps that affects the testicles. This is quite rare, but leads to complete infertility with the inability to remove genetic material.

Chlamydia is caused by chlamydia, small bacteria that are obligate parasites. They penetrate inside the cell, which they begin to gradually destroy. Chlamydia can damage the germinal endothelium of the testis, which naturally leads to infertility. In women, it is asymptomatic.

Gonorrhea is caused by the gonorrhea bacillus. The disease is transmitted through unprotected contact, but in some cases it can develop with oral sex and poor hygiene. Infertility in this case develops due to damage to the germinal layer of the testicles, which is responsible for spermatogenesis.

Varicocele

The spermatic cord is a duct, 15 - 20 centimeters long. It ensures the exit of sperm from the epididymis and forms part of the vas deferens.Varicocele is a varicose vein that nourishes the spermatic cord, testicle and its appendage.

This causes tissue expansion - blood passes through the vein worse and part of the fluid remains in the tissues surrounding the vein. This is dangerous because of the obstruction of the sperm, which leads to infertility. It is important to consider that the disease begins very imperceptibly for a man - the expansion of the vein on the scrotum is noticed only during the examination.

To prevent varicocele, it is enough to examine the scrotum on your own, however, if you are not sure that you can do it correctly, it is better to consult a doctor for a professional examination.

Diseases of the appendage

Epididymitis, or inflammation of the epididymis of a man, is an extremely painful and dangerous condition. The appendage performs the function of maturation and accumulation of spermatozoa. In it, the cells take on an adult form, which is already capable of fertilizing the egg. With a disease of the appendage, it increases, begins to hurt and loses its function.

This can happen due to hypothermia, infection or injury. You need to be extremely careful about this, since the complete degradation of the appendage can cause full-fledged infertility, which is not treated either medically or surgically.

Cryptorchism

Cryptorchism is a congenital disease. With cryptorchidism, one of the testicles fails to descend. It is located like a female ovary, in the peritoneum. The most common is cryptorchidism of the right testicle, which is associated with the anatomical features of the male body.

Cryptorchism leads to reduced spermatogenesis, which causes infertility in men. There is too little sperm in the ejaculate for fertilization. Treatment is usually surgical, it is advisable to carry it out at an early age - then the testicle can continue to develop normally, and stop the development of infertility.

Hypogonadism

Hypogonadism is a decreased production of sperm. It develops as a genetic disease, or in the process of inflammation of the testicle or other organs of the male reproductive system. Hypogonadism is usually determined during a semen analysis and subsequent ultrasound and histological analysis of testicular tissue.

Treatment is symptomatic and is based on the cause of the disease. With severe and extensive damage to hypogonadism, male infertility is incurable, however, with working areas of the endothelium, it is possible to collect sperm from the testicle and fertilize the woman using IVF methods.

Hormonal and metabolic disorders

Hormonal imbalance is often responsible for male infertility. The hormonal background of a man is based on the amount of luteinizing hormone and testosterone. A hormone disorder can be based not only on damage to the reproductive system, but also be associated with changes in the adrenal glands and hypothalamus. The hypothalamic-pituitary system works to produce liberins and statins.

Gonadoliberin is responsible for the production of male and female hormones. When it enters the blood, it stimulates the production of sex hormones - estrogen and testosterone. They are produced not only in the genitals. Muscle tissue is responsible for the production of testosterone, and fatty tissue is responsible for estrogen.

With obesity, a man may have a small amount of sperm, which is associated with the active work of the female sex hormone. It extinguishes the male hormone, which inevitably leads to temporary dysfunction of the reproductive system. Another reason lies in the adrenal glands - the medulla of which produces testosterone in large quantities.

Specific Reasons

Specific reasons include, for example, increased temperature of the scrotum. Spermatozoa do not withstand high temperatures, because the testicles are anatomically placed outside the body - this allows them to be more mobile and active. After taking a warm bath or wearing underwear that is too tight.

Another problem can be considered malnutrition, therefore, before a planned pregnancy, it is necessary to switch to an increased amount of vegetables in the diet and stop smoking and alcohol. It is also beneficial for the health of future children, since alcohol and nicotine are mutagenic factors.

Infertility treatment

The treatment of infertility in men depends on the cause, and it must be started with a trip to the andrologist. For your confidence, at the first symptoms, you can use the services of a private doctor, because this improves the attitude towards the patient. The necessary tests in any case, as a rule, cost money. Ultrasound, histological analyzes and spermogram are performed.

The main thing is not to delay visiting a doctor, so you should constantly monitor your health. Violations in the reproductive system often lead to infertility precisely because of the lack of treatment. Therefore, constant monitoring, especially during an active sexual life, can protect you from the most common causes of infertility.