Intrauterine Insemination Iui
Intrauterine insemination IUI is also known as artificial
insemination and is a very popular fertility treatment method. This
technique was initially developed for domestic and farm animals but later began to be used among humans too to
treat infertility.
IUI can be used effectively only for some causes of infertility and is ineffective in
conditions like blocked fallopian tubes, menopause, and severe male factor infertility and also in women suffering
from advanced stages of endometriosis. Age is another factor which has a big impact on the effectiveness of
intrauterine insemination IUI.
This method is practically useless in women who are over the age of forty but
highly effective in younger women who are infertile.
The other factors that can affect the effectiveness of this technique include
concentration of motile sperm, motility, morphology and sperm count. If any of these are low, the success rate of
this method becomes low.
Intrauterine insemination is best used to treat couples who have unexplained
infertility; it can also be used in other conditions like beginning stages of endometriosis, cervical factor and
mild male factor infertility and in women with ovulation problems. Most fertility specialists recommend IUI as a
first line treatment option; it can be undertaken for a period of three to four months and should be discontinued
if positive results are not obtained. However women who suffer from polycystic ovarian syndrome can try out this
technique for a longer period.
In this process, the woman is first given medications to stimulate her ovaries and
produce multiple eggs during ovulation. The timing of intrauterine
insemination IUI method is matched to the time of the release of the eggs. The male partner has to provide a
semen sample by masturbation; care should be taken to avoid ejaculation for two to five days before providing the
sample. The sperm is then washed and processed in the laboratory to remove it from the other components of the
semen and a concentrated sample is thus obtained.
On the day of ovulation, the woman has to report to the clinic for the main procedure
of IUI. The patient is made to lie down and a speculum in inserted into the vagina. The cervical area is cleaned
thoroughly and the processed specimen of motile sperm is placed in the cervix or into the uterus using a sterile
catheter. The whole procedure gets over in a matter of minutes and there is very slight discomfort felt. After an
IUI, some clinics recommend the woman to lie down for a short duration but this is strictly not necessary as the
sperms are placed high up in the uterine cavity and will not leak out even if you stand or walk about.
Intrauterine insemination IUI is dependent on various factors like
age of the woman, duration of infertility, causes of infertility, motile sperm count and viability and also on the
type of ovarian stimulation used. Pregnancy rate can be high with this technique if the woman is below thirty eight
years of age, has mild endometriosis and the man is able to produce a good quality semen with highly motile
sperms.
If you and your partner have been battling infertility, then the first thing to be
done is to visit an infertility specialist who can put on the right treatment path. Get as much as information as
you can about IUI from your doctor as well as online sites or medical books before going in for the procedure as
this provides a realistic picture of the entire technique. The Mayo clinic offers excellent infertility services
and you can visit their online website to gather more information regarding the same.
One of the most important questions on a woman’s mind after she takes up this
procedure is how soon she can perform a pregnancy test after IUI. Most
fertility specialists recommend a two week or fourteen days wait before carrying out a pregnancy test. This is
because; the card test which is used by women at home to detect pregnancy is only designed to measure higher levels
of the HCG hormone. So taking a test earlier will only yield a negative result even though you actually might be
pregnant.
False positives are extremely rare in a card test after intrauterine insemination IUI
but false negatives are much more common. Hence it is advisable to consult your specialist once again after the two
week period to confirm about the pregnancy. A positive result means a time for celebration but a word of advice;
take adequate care during the early days of pregnancy as most miscarriages happen during the first trimester. If
you get a negative result, get the doctor to confirm it for you before going in for your next IUI
procedure.
To summarize, intrauterine insemination IUI is a highly effective procedure to treat
infertility in young women and also if you fulfill the other criteria.
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