What Do Infertility Statistics Mean?
Posted: Wednesday, January 13, 2010
by John Williamson
http://health-vitality.com
INFERTILITY DEFINED.
Infertility is a condition that affects both men and women. Over the years, the numbers have exponentially increased that by 2002, infertility rate had reached 7.3 Million. This figure shows that infertility cases are not isolated. In fact, the numbers show us that more than 12% of the reproductive population is couples who are experiencing difficulty in conception. This figure also includes male infertility cases.
It has been said in various researches, dissertations and analyses, that the desire to pro-create is man's nature. And to be able to conceive an offspring has been an issue that is reinforced by society.
Infertility is defined as the inability of a couple to bear a child after one year of regular intercourse without the use of contraceptives. This has also been further expounded into the inability to carry a pregnancy onto full term, resulting in miscarriages.
Two kinds of infertility are identified: Primary infertility is defined as the inability to conceive without any previous children, while Secondary infertility is the inability to bear children after having at least one child.
INFERTILITY REASONS AND CAUSES.
The reasons for both women's and men's infertility range from biological, emotional, psychological and environmental. Although these reasons do contribute to infertility cases, the advancement of medical technology has isolated these reasons and we understand that purely psychological and emotional reasons make up about 10% of the total infertility cases.
Infertility is sometimes caused by male infertility, which in fact accounts for about 50% and of this percentage, only 90% can be attributed to biological reasons like deficiencies and abnormalities in sperm quality, sperm count, and sperm motility. Only 10% of the male infertility cases are caused by hormonal imbalance resulting in less production of testosterone.
Statistics show that women from ages 15 to 44 are diagnosed with impaired fecundity. It is the inability to carry a baby in the uterus once a conception occurs. The charts have shown this to be 11.8% of the total female population or a population reaching more than 7 Million. Women who are diagnosed to be infertile or those who cannot conceive due to ovarian and hormonal defects account for 11.4% of the total female population.
The age plays a role in women infertility and a woman is believed to be most fertile at the ages of 20 to 32. After mid-30s and into the early 40s, a woman's fertility is significantly reduced to 83%.
By 46 years of age, the woman's fertility rate drops to a low 15%. This shows us that with women, age does make a difference. The infertility statistics shows us that women in their twenties are more conditioned to bear children and are least likely to experience complications in pregnancy. However, this does not mean that women entering into the 30s are incapable of producing offspring. Though the chances may be smaller, the possibility of conceiving is still high nonetheless.
For both men and women, STRESS plays a vital role in infertility. This external factor accounts for 20% of the cases and is considered a pivotal key in a couples' chance to conceive. Lifestyle habits like smoking, drinking excessive alcohol, taking drugs and medications, over exposure to work and pressure play a role in fertility.
INFERTILITY EFFECTS.
Crunching the numbers, the diagnosis of infertility and the long road to treatment and conception has meant that both men and women experience depression and helplessness and infertility has been found to cause a significant part in marital strain.
By 1980, infertility was conceptualized as a crisis, based on a couples initial reactions of frustration, anger, depression, confusion and even humiliation.
With the increasing numbers in infertility cases, this has fortunately pushed more focused efforts in the medical arena. Advancement in medical technology has contributed to the early and thorough assessments of the causes of infertility. More importantly, numerous options and treatments have come to light. Prescriptions like Clomid, fertility procedures like IVFs, GIFTs and other artificial reproductive tests have raised the conception rate after infertility diagnosis to a significant 45%.
Get the Best Advice and Information on Infertility Statistics and everything you need to know about Infertility Symptoms and alternative treatment at:
> > http://www.NewInfertility.com
This Article has been viewed 89 times. (Not updated in real-time.)
No comments yet.We want your comments! If you can read this, you don't have javascript enabled, so you can't use this comment system. Please enable javascript.