Researchers in the United States have found evidence that male infertility may have genetic causes which are set from before a man is born.
The team at the University of Southern California looked at sperm DNA from men at fertility clinics, and they found differences between those with fertility problems and those with normal sperm counts. Their findings suggest that the way DNA is processed may be a cause.
The research is quite complicated if you aren't science-minded, but for more details of the study, you can see the press release from the University here
Monday 17 December 2007
Thursday 13 December 2007
Christmas - the worst time of year ?
Christmas can be the hardest time of the year when you're trying unsuccessfully to get pregnant. It's difficult not to imagine how it could be if you had a child, and to think about all the things you could do to make it fun for them. The family focus seems to get even sharper, and it can be lonely and isolating when you don't fit the pattern of what we're told makes for a happy Christmas.
Some couples find it helps to break the mould of what we think we're meant to do and to go on holiday instead, others may opt to spend Christmas alone together rather than with family members and young children. What I think is most important is to remember that you're not the only one feeling this way. One in six (or one in seven, depending on which source you use!) of the population experiences some kind of problems conceiving, and that means there are a lot of other people out there going through exactly the same feelings about it all. What's perhaps even more important is not to feel guilty about feeling that way - and to make sure your Christmas present to yourself is to spend Christmas in any way you think will make it easier for you - even if that does mean telling friends or family with young children that you're off in search of the sun for Christmas and won't be there to help with the washing up!
Some couples find it helps to break the mould of what we think we're meant to do and to go on holiday instead, others may opt to spend Christmas alone together rather than with family members and young children. What I think is most important is to remember that you're not the only one feeling this way. One in six (or one in seven, depending on which source you use!) of the population experiences some kind of problems conceiving, and that means there are a lot of other people out there going through exactly the same feelings about it all. What's perhaps even more important is not to feel guilty about feeling that way - and to make sure your Christmas present to yourself is to spend Christmas in any way you think will make it easier for you - even if that does mean telling friends or family with young children that you're off in search of the sun for Christmas and won't be there to help with the washing up!
Friday 7 December 2007
Latest IVF figures
New figures out today show that more people in the UK are having IVF, and that there has been a small increase in success rates.
The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority figures are always rather out of date by the time they are published, and these relate to 2005, but they show success rates had risen by 0.9% to 21.6 overall. For younger women, the increase was slightly better, with success rates for women under 35 rising from 28.1% to 29.6%. Meanwhile the number of patients having IVF has risen by six percent.
At the same time, the HFEA released the success rates for each individual clinic in the UK, but this year the Authority made a point of warning patients that the league tables should not be used in isolation as the only way to select a clinic. Not all clinics offer all treatments, and some have better success rates than others for women of different ages. The proximity of a clinic to home should also be taken into consideration. For more advice on how to choose a clinic, you may want to see my November posting on the subject. You can read more detail about all the latest HFEA figures here
The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority figures are always rather out of date by the time they are published, and these relate to 2005, but they show success rates had risen by 0.9% to 21.6 overall. For younger women, the increase was slightly better, with success rates for women under 35 rising from 28.1% to 29.6%. Meanwhile the number of patients having IVF has risen by six percent.
At the same time, the HFEA released the success rates for each individual clinic in the UK, but this year the Authority made a point of warning patients that the league tables should not be used in isolation as the only way to select a clinic. Not all clinics offer all treatments, and some have better success rates than others for women of different ages. The proximity of a clinic to home should also be taken into consideration. For more advice on how to choose a clinic, you may want to see my November posting on the subject. You can read more detail about all the latest HFEA figures here
Tuesday 4 December 2007
HFEA acts to reduce multiple births
The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority has finally come up with a long-awaited policy to reduce multiple births after IVF, and is calling for a professionally-led national strategy to cut the twin rate to 10% over a period of three years.
Patients are often unaware of the real risks they are taking with their children's health when it comes to multiple births, and fertility clinics have not always acted in their best interests on this front. The biggest danger to the health of children conceived by IVF in the UK is multiple birth, and the HFEA estimates that around 126 IVF babies die every year purely as a result of being multiples. For many others, being a twin or triplet may mean being born prematurely and suffering life-long health problems as a result of this.
To have one healthy child at a time should be the ideal outcome of fertility treatment, but the patchy and inadequate funding for IVF and fierce commercial competition between clinics has not encouraged joined-up thinking on this matter. For too long, patients have been penalised by a system which encourages some of them to take unnecessary risks.
We must now hope that the HFEA's strategy really does make a difference, and warmly welcome the fact that the Interim Chair of the Authority, Walter Merricks, has written to the Health Minister to explain the link between patient concerns about single embryo transfer and the lack of funding for IVF treatment. Maybe now, finally, we will see a move towards the government's broken promises on this issue.
You can see the HFEA press release here
Patients are often unaware of the real risks they are taking with their children's health when it comes to multiple births, and fertility clinics have not always acted in their best interests on this front. The biggest danger to the health of children conceived by IVF in the UK is multiple birth, and the HFEA estimates that around 126 IVF babies die every year purely as a result of being multiples. For many others, being a twin or triplet may mean being born prematurely and suffering life-long health problems as a result of this.
To have one healthy child at a time should be the ideal outcome of fertility treatment, but the patchy and inadequate funding for IVF and fierce commercial competition between clinics has not encouraged joined-up thinking on this matter. For too long, patients have been penalised by a system which encourages some of them to take unnecessary risks.
We must now hope that the HFEA's strategy really does make a difference, and warmly welcome the fact that the Interim Chair of the Authority, Walter Merricks, has written to the Health Minister to explain the link between patient concerns about single embryo transfer and the lack of funding for IVF treatment. Maybe now, finally, we will see a move towards the government's broken promises on this issue.
You can see the HFEA press release here
Sperm donor fathers
There's much controversy over the case of a sperm donor who is being made to pay child support for two children he fathered for a lesbian couple. It wasn't until the lesbian couple split up that the Child Support Agency asked him to take a paternity test, and then demanded that he pay maintenance.
Men who donate sperm to licensed fertility clinics are not responsible for any children conceived using their donation, but that's not the case if you make your own arrangements. The man in this case says he would never have agreed to donate sperm to the couple had he realised the potential consequences.
Perhaps more worrying for both sperm donors and prospective parents, this law also affects those who donate to online fertility services. Many prospective parents use these websites which appear to offer confidentiality and quick, easy access to donor sperm, without realising that they are unlicensed. Donors who sell them sperm are not made aware that they could end being legally responsible for children in the future.
For prospective parents, there may also be questions about proper screening when using online donor services, as they don't follow the protocols used to check sperm is infection-free in licensed fertility clinics. Sometimes, going through the proper channels can be a slow and frustrating process, but the safeguards of our strictly regulated system do offer a degree of security you may not find elsewhere.
Men who donate sperm to licensed fertility clinics are not responsible for any children conceived using their donation, but that's not the case if you make your own arrangements. The man in this case says he would never have agreed to donate sperm to the couple had he realised the potential consequences.
Perhaps more worrying for both sperm donors and prospective parents, this law also affects those who donate to online fertility services. Many prospective parents use these websites which appear to offer confidentiality and quick, easy access to donor sperm, without realising that they are unlicensed. Donors who sell them sperm are not made aware that they could end being legally responsible for children in the future.
For prospective parents, there may also be questions about proper screening when using online donor services, as they don't follow the protocols used to check sperm is infection-free in licensed fertility clinics. Sometimes, going through the proper channels can be a slow and frustrating process, but the safeguards of our strictly regulated system do offer a degree of security you may not find elsewhere.
Monday 3 December 2007
Testicle-shrinking bodybuilding drugs
It's believed that tens of thousands of people, mainly men, in the UK are using anabolic steroids to enhance their muscles and their performance at the gym. There's growing concern that it's not just adults, but also teenage boys who are turning to steroids in an attempt to pump up their bodies.
Most of those who use the drugs are completely unaware of the side effects, which include some pretty alarming risks for male fertility. The drugs can cause the testicles to shrink and shrivel up. Sperm production slows down, or can come to a complete halt. What's more alarming, in long-term users these effects may not always be reversible once the drugs are stopped.
Having an excessively muscular body isn't everyone's cup of tea, but more awareness is needed of the dangers of using bodybuilding drugs to achieve that.
Most of those who use the drugs are completely unaware of the side effects, which include some pretty alarming risks for male fertility. The drugs can cause the testicles to shrink and shrivel up. Sperm production slows down, or can come to a complete halt. What's more alarming, in long-term users these effects may not always be reversible once the drugs are stopped.
Having an excessively muscular body isn't everyone's cup of tea, but more awareness is needed of the dangers of using bodybuilding drugs to achieve that.
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