Male Infertility
Key points
- Infertility is defined as the inability to conceive after 1 year of unprotected sexual intercourse.
- Roughly 40% of cases involve a male contribution or factor, 40% involve a female factor, and the remainder involve both sexes.
- The evaluation of male infertility is undertaken methodically to acquire several kinds of information.
- Before discussing the diagnosis and treatment of male infertility, a review of basic reproductive tract physiology is in order.
Introduction
Infertility is defined as the inability to conceive after 1 year of unprotected sexual intercourse. Infertility affects approximately 15% of couples. Roughly 40% of cases involve a male contribution or factor, 40% involve a female factor, and the remainder involve both sexes.
The evaluation of male infertility is undertaken methodically to acquire several kinds of information. Before discussing the diagnosis and treatment of male infertility, a review of basic reproductive tract physiology is in order.
- Paul J. Turek, MDMale Infertility
Written and revised by
David Cohen, M.D.
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