Post Date December, 03 2023
At present, there are more and more male infertility patients, and the outpatient volume of reproductive centers in major hospitals is very large. The reporter learned from the Reproductive Center of Guangdong Maternal and Child Health Hospital that the number of outpatient services at the center is expected to exceed 6000 this year, an increase of 1000 people compared to last year. Wang Lihu, Director of the Reproductive and Andrology Department of Guangdong Maternal and Child Health Hospital, said that the causes of infertility are very complex. Clinical statistics show that only one third of cases are caused by male partners, one third are caused by both male and female partners, and one third are caused by female partners alone. In terms of genetic factors, men seem to have more problems.
70% abnormal semen in male infertility
Wang Lihu said that male infertility is a complex and difficult problem to solve, as there are many diseases and factors that interfere or affect fertility, such as varicocele, obstructive azoospermia, epididymitis, sexual dysfunction, and so on. Even more tricky is that there are data showing that nearly 60% -75% of infertile patients cannot find the cause. Wang Lihu said that men with no beard, no Adam's apple, and smooth and tender skin often have fertility problems. Of course, this does not mean that men who are masculine have strong reproductive function.
Many men's semen quality has decreased, which has been a problem that experts have noticed in recent years. Zhou Shaohu, Associate Professor of Urology and Andrology at the First Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, introduced that the quality of male semen in China is decreasing at a rate of 1% annually, with a decrease of over 40% in sperm count.
In outpatient clinics, it was found that 60% -70% of infertile patients have abnormal semen quality, such as low quantity, low vitality, and increased abnormal sperm, "said Wang Lihu. There are many reasons for abnormal sperm quality, such as epididymitis and varicocele. In fact, every time a man ejaculates, there are 40 to 200 million sperm in his semen. These sperm are heavily filtered through the vagina, and only over 10 million sperm can enter the female uterus, while only a few hundred sperm can approach the egg. It can be seen that the elimination rate of sperm is very high. So, if the number of sperm is low, then the hope of women getting pregnant naturally becomes slim.
In addition to abnormal sperm quality, there are also many male infertility cases caused by azoospermia, which accounts for about 10% of male infertility patients. In addition, there are also many infertile patients who have sexual dysfunction issues, such as erectile dysfunction.
Infertility patients' preferred medication treatment
Most male infertility patients only need medication treatment, which is not suitable to use human reproductive assistance technology from the beginning, "said Wang Lihu." Taking asthenozoospermia and oligospermia as examples, after treatment with human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG), the sperm density of patients increases, and serum and testicular testosterone levels also increase. For women, human chorionic gonadotropin technology is also a drug that promotes ovulation
Wang Lihu believes that male spermatogenesis and maturation are also closely related to androgen, but anti estrogen drugs can also be used to increase the number of sperm. For example, clomiphene was originally used to promote ovulation in women, but it can also increase the number of sperm taken by male infertility patients.
There are also some azoospermia patients who can be corrected through surgery, connecting the "bridge", and sperm will have a way out, allowing their wives to naturally conceive.
Traditional Chinese medicine has accumulated rich experience in treating male infertility. Zhou Shaohu believes that through the dialectical treatment of traditional Chinese medicine, regulating the whole body, the quality of male sperm can be improved, which can greatly increase the chances of natural pregnancy for women. Experts say that only a small number of male infertility patients who have failed drug treatment should consider human assisted reproductive technology for in vitro fertilization.
