The Urologist: What to Expect

While dealing with infertility, there are many different doctors that you can go see. If you are dealing with male factor infertility, you may be referred to a urologist. We were recently referred to a urologist for male factor infertility. Upon making an appointment with our urologist, they sent us a family history questionnaire in the mail to bring with us.

They may request that your husband do a semen analysis to check for sperm count and morphology. In our particular case, we had already done two with our OBGYN so it was not a requirement.

They will go over your family history questionnaire to see if they can isolate the cause of the male factor infertility. Some possible causes are varicocele's, undescended testicles, and a previous vasectomy.

The doctor will perform a physical exam on your husband to check for any abnormalities such as a varicocele. If a varicocele is discovered, they may discuss the option of having an out patient surgery to tie it off. They will also do some blood work to determine if the cause is hormonal. If the cause is hormonal, it is very possible that your husband will be put on Clomid. Clomid is an estrogen blocker commonly given to females to assist with ovulatory dysfunction.

Now depending on the circumstances of your particular situation and the health of the female partner, they will decide a course of action. There are several assisted reproductive technologies (ART) that are used to give an infertile couple the opportunity to be parents.

One of the most common ART procedures that is used with male factor infertility is In Vitro Fertilization with ICSI. The downside to this procedure is that it can cost upwards of $10,000 and is not usually covered by insurance. There are also several health and genetic factors that will need to be considered before this course of action is taken. It is a very invasive procedure that is very stressful on the female body.

Before considering any ART procedures, you need to decide how far you are willing to take your journey to being a parent and how much you are willing to spend. Besides the physical stress of the procedures, the emotional stress of failure can be devastating.

For more information on assisted reproductive technologies you can visit the Center for Disease Control website at www.cdc.gov or go to the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technologies at www.sart.org.