Information supplied by Waukesha Memorial Hospital

Planning A Family When Should You Seek Help?

• You're a woman and have been trying unsuccessfully to conceive for a year.

• You're a man who has difficulty with erections. You want to start a family.

An estimated one in 12 couples face fertility problems. When should you seek expert advice? According to Gloria Halverson, MD, a Brookfield-based obstetrician and gynecologist on staff at Waukesha Memorial Hospital, one guiding principal is time. One out of five couples do not conceive after a year of actively trying, which means having intercourse on the woman's most fertile days. "For many couples, the one year mark is a time to start considering fertility counseling," she says.

Some of the most common causes of infertility are previously diagnosed medical conditions. "If you now, or in the past, have any of these conditions, you may want to consider fertility counseling earlier," Halverson says.

Conditions referred to by Dr. Halverson include:

• Infrequent, irregular or absent periods
• Infection of the fallopian tubes
• Sexually transmitted disease (men or women)
• Mumps after puberty (men)
• Lower abdominal pain just before periods
• Pain during intercourse or difficulty with erections
• Chronic disease, including diabetes or hypothyroidism (men or women)
• Depression or high blood pressure treated with medication (men)
• Past pelvic surgery
• Fibroids
• Hernia surgery or surgery on male reproductive tract
• Injury to testicles

"The good news about infertility is that we've made tremendous advances in the last decade," says Cindy Gunnarson, RNC, women's health clinical specialist at WMH. "Couples facing infertility have many more options and much greater odds of success than ever before. A couple's decision to seek fertility treatment is a serious emotional, physical and financial investment. Before beginning the process, we strongly recommend couples understand as much as possible."

In addition to discussing it with their physician, couples should read thoroughly. Staff at the Advanced Regional Fertility Services at Waukesha Memorial Hospital also can help answer questions so that couples understand the process, the language used, the diagnostic test and treatment options they may face.

Couples also should check with health care insurance providers to find out if evaluation and treatment are covered and, if so, to what extent.

Information supplied by Waukesha Memorial Hospital.

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