The following modalities of treatment
are generally employed.
Medical treatment
This consists of the administration
of certain drugs to improve seminal quality. Clomiphene citrate, mesterolone,
tamoxifen, gonadotropin injections, antibiotics, steroids etc. are commonly
used.
Surgical treatment
Obstructions
in the sperm conduction pathway, varicoceles, undescended testes etc.
can be treated by operation.
Modern microsurgical techniques
are of great help. Even patients who have undergone a vasectomy in the
past can have their vasectomy reversed and the tubes recanalised successfully
using microsurgery.
Assisted reproduction
In many cases, neither medicines
nor operations are of help. In such cases, an attempt is made in the
reproductive laboratory to improve semen quality and facilitate the
penetration of the sperm into the ovum. This includes sperm washing/capacitation,
intra-uterine insemination (IUI), gamete intra-fallopian transfer (GIFT),
in vitro fertilisation (IVF), and micro-manipulation (ICSI).
Microsurgery and assisted reproduction
require considerable training, skill and infrastructure.
Despite the availability of so
many treatment modalities, some patients remain incurable and no treatment,
cheap or expensive, can improve their fertility prospects. One then
has no alternative but to recommend an AID (donor insemination) or adoption.
Awareness
of the magnitude and importance of the male factor in infertility is
relatively recent. Tremendous advances have been made in andrological
research over the past few years. If not today, one can envisage in
the conceivable future, a situation where all males (and females) with
infertility can be completely cured.
To receive an approximate idea of cost and
other information regarding treatments, please contact
us.
