Posts Tagged ‘Male Fertility’
Friday, October 21st, 2011
It’s long been known that women’s fertility dips as they get older (and especially after they are in their mid-30s), but the traditional belief has been that males didn’t have this issue.
This may not be the case, according to a Colorado study performed in conjunction with the National Foundation for Fertility Research (NFFR) that has concluded that sperm from middle- and older-aged male mice is not as viable as that from younger male mice.
In the mice, sperm quality began to decline in their middle years, which would be roughly 40 years of age in a human man. And if the findings translate from mice to men, it could shed some light on male infertility.
For instance, a couple who is having fertility issues may find that the problem lies with the sperm quality of the man if he is in or past middle age. Should this be the case, there are options that could help the partners conceive using the strongest of his sperm as determined in a laboratory setting.
Key results of the study showed that sperm from midlife and older mice produced embryos that:
- Were less likely to implant in the woman’s uterus than were those from younger male mice.
- Were less likely to develop in the womb if they were able to implant.
If you would like to learn more about male infertility or other fertility issues, please contact the Reproductive Science Institute (RSI) to schedule a consultation.
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Tags: Colorado Study, Dips, Dr. Hearns, Dr. Munabi, Fertility Issues, Fertility Research, Fertility Treatment, Human Man, Infertility, Male Fertility, Male Infertility, Male Mice, Mid 30s, Middle Age, Midlife, National Foundation, Nffr, PA Infertility, Philadelphia Infertility, Reproductive Science Institute, sperm, Traditional Belief, Uterus, womb, Wyomissing
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Wednesday, September 14th, 2011
There has been a great deal of press recently over the realization and acceptance of cancer treatments during early childhood and adulthood as a contributor to female infertility. As a consequence, girls and women who choose to undergo radiation and chemotherapy treatments are often counseled as to their options regarding their future fertility.
But what about the men and boys with cancer?
Not surprisingly, male infertility can be exacerbated or caused by cancer treatments, especially if they’ve been given drugs such as melphalan, ifosfamide, cyclophosphamide and/or procarbazine. (Those medications have high alkaline levels.) And if they’ve needed to undergo surgery or targeted radiation to their reproductive organs as a result of cancer, they may be left without healthy sperm. Sometimes, male infertility can even come about from treatments to other areas of the body, such as the abdomen or brain.
So what are men with cancer who wish to have children later in life to do?
First, it’s important to tackle the cancer as a primary concern. Though male infertility may be a consideration, it is not the most pressing one. The cancer needs to be handled foremost. However, it’s definitely recommended that all men (or parents of boys) discuss how their treatments could have lasting effects on their fertility.
Next, if a man who has had cancer (even if it was as a young child) is having difficulty conceiving with his partner, it’s critical that he be upfront about his medical history with their fertility specialist. That way, the specialist can initiate tests to determine if the infertility is related to previous cancer treatments.
Finally, it’s not the end of the world. Many fertility specialists have found success with intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), a process that requires only one sperm for fertilization. There are other options as well, including the use of viable sperm donors.
If you’d like to learn more about male infertility matters as they relate to cancer and other conditions and you are within traveling distance of Wyomissing or Chesterbrook, we invite you to set up a consultation with The Reproductive Science Institute of Suburban Philadelphia, P.C. (RSI) today.
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Tags: Abdomen, Adulthood, Cancer Treatments, Chemotherapy, Chemotherapy Treatments, Cyclophosphamide, Dr. Hearns, Dr. Munabi, female infertility, fertility specialist, Fertility Specialists, Fertilization, Healthy Sperm, Infertility, Male Fertility, Male Infertility, Medical History, Melphalan, Philadelphia PA Infertility, Procarbazine, Reproductive Organs, Reproductive Science Institute of Suburban Philadelphia, Rsi, Sperm Donors, Sperm Injection, Wyomissing PA Infertility
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Wednesday, July 27th, 2011
For many men, taking the first trip to a fertility specialist can seem embarrassing or uncomfortable. That’s likely due to the media’s focus on female infertility rather than male infertility. However, it’s important for guys to be open to finding out why they’ve been unable to conceive.
Many individuals are surprised to learn that male infertility is the primary issue in at least one third of all cases of infertility between couples. (Some statistics report this number to be 40 percent or higher!) Just hearing this fact is calming for many male fertility patients, as it eases the psychological burden of them feeling like they are “alone” in their fertility struggles or that they “cannot perform”.
Still, it’s not unusual for us at RSI, one of the premiere fertility clinics in the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, area, to come against some resistance when men initially arrive at our facility. This is especially true when they have been brought by the women in their lives; for men, this can feel akin to being “pointed at” in a crowd.
Guys, the bottom line is this: We understand. Male infertility is one of our specialties; therefore, we are sensitive to the emotional considerations that accompany the diagnosis. If you’re feeling irate, standoffish, sad or uncomfortable, it’s okay. We as fertility specialists are not here to push you in one direction or another; we’re here to make sure you have all the facts and can proceed as makes sense for you and your significant other.
The upshot – and it’s a great one! – is that we’ve successfully helped many couples with their infertility issues, whether they stemmed from female infertility or male infertility. But it’s necessary for patients to take the first step and give us (or a preferred, reputable fertility clinic) a call.
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Tags: Abraham Munabi, Bottom Line, Courage, Diagnosis, Dr. Munabi, Emotional Considerations, Facebook, female infertility, fertility clinic, Fertility Clinics, fertility specialist, Fertility Specialists, First Trip, Infertility, Infertility Issues, Male Fertility, Male Infertility, Many Men, Philadelphia Pennsylvania Area, Psychological Burden, Reproductive Science Institute of Suburban Philadelphia, Rsi, Twitter, Upshot
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Monday, February 28th, 2011
In the past decade or so, the realization has come about that bones are more than simply a structure to hold our organs, muscles and skin. There are in fact correlations to the internal make-up of bones and energy metabolism as well as reproduction. It is well-known that there is a connection between menopause and osteoporosis in women. Thus, it came a surprise to Gerald Karsenty and his colleagues at Columbia University in New York City that their study with mice showed a relationship between bone cells and sperm production in male mice, yet no effect (at this time) on any female reproductive aspects.
To break the study down, osteocalcin is a hormone contained in osteoblasts. Osteoblasts are bone cells that partake in building new bone cells. In this study, the researchers took osteoblasts and combined them with cell cultures from either testes or ovaries of mice. The results showed a great increase in testosterone in the testis cells but no reaction or change in hormones in the ovary cells due to the introduction of the osteoblasts. Given these results, the researchers went on to inject osteoblasts into the blood stream of male mice, which resulted in increased production of testosterone in the blood stream. To further specify their testing, the researchers took a batch of male mice and removed their gene for osteocalcin. The mice without osteocalcin had smaller testes, lower sperm counts and smaller litter sizes when bred than normal male mice.
Though this study has only been performed on mice at this time, Karsenty has strong feelings that the hormone osteocalcin may play a factor in fertilty in men and believes that it could possibly be used in the future in treatments for male infertilty.
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Tags: Blood Stream, Bone Cells, Cell Cultures, Columbia University, Correlations, Dr. Munabi, Energy Metabolism, Fertility, Fertilty, Hormones, Infertilty, Litter Sizes, Low Sperm Count, Male Factor, Male Fertility, Male Infertility, Male Mice, Menopause And Osteoporosis, Osteocalcin, Ovaries, Ovary, Reproductive Aspects, Rsi, Sperm Counts, Testes, Testosterone
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Sunday, June 20th, 2010
“Of course HE can become a dad at any age! But for a woman, it’s different!”
How many times have we heard that phrase repeated by people who are discussing the whole parenting issue of males versus females? But it perpetuates a myth that male fertility is something that doesn’t change over time and isn’t a concern.
The truth of the matter is that between 30-40% of all fertility problems in couples is due to male infertility, not female infertility. It’s a fact that surprises a lot of men… and women.
The next time you hear someone talking about the notion that men are somehow immune to fertility issues, you might want to interject the aforementioned statistic. Hopefully, that will help educate people into realizing that fertility isn’t a one-gender concern.
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Tags: Couples, Dad, female infertility, Females, Fertility Issues, Fertility Problems, Infertility, Lot, Male Fertility, Male Infertility, Men And Women, Men Women, Miracles, Myth, Notion, Parenting Issue, Phrase, Statistic, Surprises, Truth Of The Matter
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Thursday, June 17th, 2010
Testicular cancer can be overcome, but it can have serious side effects, including male infertility. That’s why a recent finding by British scientists studying testicular cancer is so exciting.
The scientists have been able to isolate three genetic risk factors (the genes are called TERT, ATF7IP and DMRT1) for testicular cancer, findings that they hope will someday lead to early prevention (and cure) of a disease that’s been known to rob men of their fertility.
Men between the ages of 15 and 45 are at the greatest risk for testicular cancer, which can be treated but often leaves the men with fertility problems. If genes can tell early who is most likely to have testicular cancer, it opens the door for ways to keep male fertility intact.
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Tags: British Scientists, Fertility Problems, Genes, Genetic Risk Factors, Infertility, Male Fertility, Male Infertility, Miracles, Prevention And Cure, Rsi, Testicular Cancer
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Saturday, May 15th, 2010
Straight from the latest in reproductive health science come stories that say ultrasound may someday be the key to contraception for men.
Tests have been performed at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, and have preliminarily shown that a single treatment of ultrasound (focused on a man’s testicles) could provide up to six months of contraception.
Thus far, it would also appear that the contraception is easily reversible, meaning the effect wouldn’t be long-term in terms of affecting male fertility. (Of course, it’s always important to know that in the early stages of any study, a claim like this is only a hypothesis.)
To find out more about this innovative (and low cost) method of potential birth control for men around the globe, you can read the official press release from UNC here.
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Tags: Birth Control, Birth Control For Men, Carolina Chapel Hill, Contraception, Globe, Health Science, Hypothesis, Male Fertility, Miracles, North Carolina Chapel, North Carolina Chapel Hill, Press Release, Reproductive Health, Six Months, Testicles, Ultrasound, Unc, University Of North Carolina, University Of North Carolina Chapel Hill
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Sunday, April 4th, 2010
The results of a recent Danish study appear to link excessive drinking of soda to infertility in males, but it’s important to realize that this study does raise some serious questions and should only be used as an educational tool at this point.
Key points of the study include:
- The study was conducted on 2,554 Danish men between 2001-2005.
- Each week, some of the men drank at least 14 liter bottles of soda containing a minimum of 800 mg of caffeine per day. The control group drank a more moderate amount of soda and caffeine.
- Semen samples were used throughout the study to determine if the soda drinking was having an effect.
The results? Men who drank soda excessively had a lower sperm count.
But before you swear off an afternoon Coke or Pepsi pick-me-up, it’s important to remember that the study, while interesting, raised some questions.
For instance, similar studies done on caffeine alone showed that the ingedient caused little to no change in sperm count or viability. Plus, the Danish study didn’t consider other nutritional possibilities, such as that excessive soda drinking could contribute to eating unhealthy foods (which could lead to lowered male fertility rates.)
In the end, it’s probably best to simply adopt a healthy diet until more information connecting soda and male infertility can be unearthed.
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Tags: Coke, Control Group, Danish Men, Danish Study, Educational Tool, Excessive Drinking, fertility rates, Healthy Diet, Infertility, Liter Bottles, Male Fertility, Male Infertility, Miracles, Pepsi, Results Men, Semen Samples, Soda, Sperm Count, Unhealthy Foods, Viability
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