Male infertility treatment medicine

Fertility refers to people’s ability to reproduce without medical assistance.

Male infertility is when a man has a poor chance of making his female partner pregnant. It usually depends on the quality of his sperm cells.

Sometimes infertility is linked to sexual function, and other times it could be linked to semen quality. Here are some examples of each:

• Libido. Otherwise known as sex drive, libido describes a person’s desire to have sex. Foods or supplements that claim to increase libido are called aphrodisiacs.
• Erectile dysfunction.Also known as impotence, erectile dysfunction is when a man is unable to develop or maintain an erection.
• Sperm count. An important aspect of semen quality is the number or concentration of sperm cells in a given amount of semen.(Read more about: How to Perform a Sperm Count Using a Microscope)
• Sperm motility.An essential function of healthy sperm cells is their ability to swim. Sperm motility is measured as the percentage of moving sperm cells in a sample of semen.
• Testosterone levels.Low levels of testosterone, the male sex hormone, may be responsible for infertility in some men.

Infertility can have multiple causes and may depend on genetics, general health, fitness, diseases, and dietary contaminants.

Additionally, a healthy lifestyle and diet are important. Some foods and nutrients are associated with greater fertility benefits than others.

What are male infertility drugs?

Male fertility pills can change a man’s hormones (the endocrine system) in many ways. These medications can get your fertility back on track by increasing the amount of bioavailable testosterone and decrease the amount of estradiol (a form of estrogen). The drugs used for this purpose are the following:

• Clomiphene or Clomid
• Anastrazole or arimidex
• hCG (human chorionic gonadotropin) or hMG (human menopausal gonadotropin)

Most of these fertility drugs are taken by mouth except hCG and hMG, which are injections. As with any medication, these drugs do have side effects, but don’t worry, our goal is to find the best medication for your body and its needs.

 

What drugs are used to treat male infertility?

The following are the most common medications used to treat male fertility factors, including information about usage and associated risk factors and side effects.

Clomiphene citrate (Clomid)

It may come as a surprise to learn that the same oral medication prescribed to women to promote ovulation is also prescribed to some men in order to improve sperm count.

Clomiphene citrate is an estrogen blocker. When men take it in oral form, it triggers the pituitary gland to make more luteinizing hormone (LH) and follicle stimulation hormone (FSH). A higher-level of these two hormones can improve sperm count, morphology and motility. Clomiphene citrate also increases higher levels of natural testosterone.

Note About Testosterone Supplementation: Many men mistakenly believe that testosterone therapy supports healthy sperm production and development. Quite the opposite is true. When you take supplemental testosterone, it can signal to your body that there’s plenty of testosterone in your system. This prevents the testes from producing more, healthy sperm. Always rely on a sperm analysis by a fertility specialist and adhere strictly to his/her recommendations when treating male infertility.

 

HCG and HMG

If you are one of the rare males who doesn’t respond to clomiphene citrate, your doctor will probably prescribe hCG or hMG injections. These have the same side effects (and benefits) listed above but are only prescribed when required since they are injectable medications, adding a level of complexity to their handling and administration.

Anastrazole (Arimidex)

Anastrazole was initially developed for women and men with breast cancers that are estrogen-sensitive (stimulated by estrogen). It prevents excess testosterone from converting into estradiol inside the body’s tissues. Anastrazole is typically used when a man’s estradiol levels are higher  and testosterone levels are lower  than they should be.

How is male infertility treated?

Often, an exact cause of infertility can’t be identified. Even if an exact cause isn’t clear, your doctor might be able to recommend treatments or procedures that will result in conception.

In cases of infertility, the female partner also is recommended to be checked. This can help to determine if she will require any specific treatments or if proceeding with assisted reproductive techniques is appropriate.

Treatments for male infertility include:

• For example, a varicocele can often be surgically corrected or an obstructed vas deferens repaired. Prior vasectomies can be reversed. In cases where no sperm are present in the ejaculate, sperm can often be retrieved directly from the testicles or epididymis using sperm-retrieval techniques.
• Treating infections.Antibiotic treatment might cure an infection of the reproductive tract, but doesn’t always restore fertility.
• Treatments for sexual intercourse problems.Medication or counseling can help improve fertility in conditions such as erectile dysfunction or premature ejaculation.
• Hormone treatments and medications.Your doctor might recommend hormone replacement or medications in cases where infertility is caused by high or low levels of certain hormones or problems with the way the body uses hormones.
• Assisted reproductive technology (ART).ART treatments involve obtaining sperm through normal ejaculation, surgical extraction or from donor individuals, depending on your specific case and wishes. The sperm are then inserted into the female genital tract, or used to perform in vitro fertilization or intracytoplasmic sperm injection.

What is the best medicine to increase sperm count?

Medication can improve sperm count in some men with infertility. Your doctor may prescribe an estrogen receptor blocker, such as clomiphene citrate, which stimulates the hypothalamus and pituitary gland in the brain. Clomid is the brand name for clomiphene and is currently FDA-approved for female infertility, but doctors can also prescribe clomid for men for off-label use. It’s usually given to men who have a low sperm count caused by low testosterone levels.

How can I increase my sperm count naturally?

• Take D-aspartic acid supplements.
• Exercise regularly.
• Get enough vitamin C.
• Relax and minimize stress.
• Get enough vitamin D.
• Try tribulus terrestris.
• Take fenugreek supplements.
• Get enough zinc.

What can a man take to make him fertile?

Add Antioxidants to Your Diet

There are many antioxidants, but the ones that have been specifically studied in regards to improving sperm health are:

• Zinc: Found in oysters, crab, red meat, poultry, and beans
• Vitamin C: Found in many fruits and vegetables, with highest levels in red peppers, kiwi, oranges, and grapefruit
• Selenium: Found in high amounts in Brazil nuts (1 oz provides 780% of your daily recommended value); also found in tuna, cod, beef, turkey, and chicken
• Vitamin E: Found in nuts, seeds, oils, and leafy greens
• Folic acid: Found in beef liver, leafy green vegetables, fruits, beans, and peas, and often in fortified grains
• Lycopene: Found in tomatoes, apricots, pink grapefruit, and watermelon

As with all things, moderation is still best. Don’t eat too many of these foods (Brazil nuts should not be eaten every day, for example). You can try to add more of these foods into your diet or consider taking a supplement. Talk to your doctor first, since some supplements can interfere with other medications.

Have Frequent Sex

If you want to have a baby, you need to have sex around the time of ovulation. Having frequent sex all month long, however, may help increase your fertility.

 

Watch Your Soy Intake

Too much soy may impact your sperm counts, according to a research study that looked at eating habits. The study found men who ate high amounts of soy had lower sperm counts than men who did not. Just because you don’t eat tofu doesn’t mean this study won’t apply to you. Soy is found in a number of foods today, including fake meat patties, energy bars, and health drinks.

If you’re overweight or obese, go real easy on your soy intake. For everyone else, just don’t eat too much of it.

Avoid Toxic Chemicals in the Workplace

If you’re having difficulty conceiving, you may want to look at your job. Your occupation can have an effect on male fertility.

Common sense dictates that avoiding contact with toxins in the workplace as much as possible is vital, whether that means wearing a mask and gloves, or just keeping your body well-covered and clean from chemicals.

Quit Smoking

You already know many good reasons to kick your smoking habit. If you weren’t convinced yet, now you have one more reason: Quitting smoking may increase your fertility.

Keep Things Cool

The male reproductive organs are outside of the body for a reason to keep them at temperatures lower than 98.6 degrees F, our normal body temperature. High temperatures can damage sperm. To keep things cool:

• Avoid hot tubsand long hot baths.
• Avoiding sitting for long periods of time. If you have a desk job, get up and walk around now and then. This is good for concentration, too.
• Don’t turn on your car seat heater. Seat heaters, a feature found in some cars that warms up the seat of your car for cold winter mornings, can lead to higher than normal scrotal temperatures.
• Don’t sit with your laptop in your lap. Keeping your legs tightly together to balance the laptop, along with the heat generated by the laptop itself, can lead to higher than normal scrotal temperatures.
• Wear breathable underwear.Whether or not boxers are more fertility-friendly than briefs is a matter of debate. As long as you’re not wearing extremely tight, non-breathable fabric, your choice of underwear probably doesn’t matter.

Aim for a Healthy Weight

One way to increase your fertility is to bring your weight to a healthier level. Being over- or under-weight can upset hormone balance, leading to lower sperm counts.⁹ If you are not sure if your weight is within the healthy zone, check your body mass index (BMI).

In a study of thin men, researchers found that those with a BMI less than 20 had lower sperm concentration and a 28.1% lower total sperm count. They also found that FSH, a hormone that plays a role in the reproductive system, was higher in slim men.

In a separate study, men with obesity had lower testosterone levels. Also, as BMI levels went up, the incidence of lower sperm counts went up. For example, for men with a normal BMI, 5.3% had low sperm counts. In overweight men, 9.5% had low sperm counts, and 15.6% of obese men had low sperm counts.

Go Easy on the Alcohol

Too much alcohol can decrease your fertility. Therefore, you may want to cut back on drinking if you want to conceive. A study looking at alcoholics found that only 12% of the men had completely normal sperm counts and health, compared to 37% of non-smokers and non-alcoholics.

Keep Your Teeth and Gums Healthy

Better oral health may help increase your fertility. Bacteriospermia, or the presence of bacteria in semen, has been linked to male infertility. In one study, 23% of men with bacteria present in their semen did not improve after treatment with antibiotics alone.

Eat More Greens, Less Pizza

The role of diet and fertility is not well understood, since it’s difficult to study diet, but the available evidence indicates a healthier diet is better for fertility.

Treat Underlying Medical Conditions

Various medical conditions can affect fertility. Untreated diabetes may lead to infertility by causing retrograde ejaculation.

Even if you’re without symptoms, you might want to get your blood sugars tested if you have been diagnosed with retrograde ejaculation. Up to one-third of people with diabetes are unaware that they have the disease.

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