When men and women come to our fertility clinic, Arizona Associates for Reproductive Health, to address fertility issues, we start care by performing fertility testing.
Fertility tests evaluate the key aspects of the male and female reproductive system to determine the most likely cause of fertility problems. While fertility tests can provide valuable answers, sometimes our patients are diagnosed as having unexplained infertility.
Understandably, dealing with unexplained infertility can be frustrating because it doesn’t seem to provide any answers. Our fertility specialists help patients from Scottsdale, AZ, Gilbert, AZ, and surrounding areas understand what an unexplained fertility diagnosis tells us, and the treatments that are available to help them conceive.
An unexplained fertility diagnosis essentially means that, while we have been able to rule out many issues that could be a cause of infertility, we are unable to explain why a couple is having trouble conceiving. There are numerous things that can compromise a couple's infertility, and several tests and exams must be performed before unexplained infertility can be diagnosed.
An unexplained infertility diagnosis tells us that a thorough fertility evaluation has been performed and results show:
It is important to understand the distinction between unexplained infertility and idiopathic infertility. Unexplained infertility means that we have been unable to determine why the patient is infertile. Idiopathic infertility means there is a diagnosed source of fertility issues (for example, irregular ovulation or abnormal semen analysis), but we don’t know why the patient suffers from those issues.
If attempts to conceive have been unsuccessful for a year or more, and a patient is diagnosed with unexplained infertility, the assumption is that there are problems present that we simply have no way of evaluating or measuring. Possible unexplained infertility causes, or explanations include:
Typically, fertility treatment is personalized to address each of our Scottsdale patient’s specific fertility issues. However, even without having an exact explanation for why a patient is struggling with fertility, we can offer unexplained infertility treatment. Fertility treatments that may be effective for individuals diagnosed with unexplained infertility include ovarian stimulation along with intrauterine insemination (IUI) and in vitro fertilization (IVF). Rarely, if these unexplained infertility treatments are not successful, patients may need to consider donor eggs or sperm, or IVF treatment with a surrogate.
If your attempts to conceive have been unsuccessful for 12 months or more, it is time to consider a fertility evaluation. To learn more about fertility testing and the comprehensive range of fertility treatments offered at Arizona Associates for Reproductive Health, send us a message online or call our fertility clinic at (480) 860-4792.
