Varicoceles

Varicoceles are a common cause of male factor infertility. My husband's reduced sperm count was due to a varicocele, and having the varicocele removed solved his fertility woes. (However, since he was still married to an infertile woman, solving his fertility issue still did not result in his conceiving a child.)

A varicocele is a varicose vein in the testicles. A varicocele causes problems because it holds a pocket of blood and keeps the sperm too warm, causing some of the sperm to die off. When the testicle tries to protect the sperm from overheating, the varicocele manages to keep the warm blood against the sperm. When I think of varicose veins, I think of the really large… [more]

Somehow, we managed to trudge through our second holiday season as an infertile couple. January brought a second try at becoming pregnant through an intrauterine insemination (IUI). Unfortunately, my husband's sperm count was still much lower than we hoped. For a second time, we did the IUI despite a low sperm count, and for a second time, we did not conceive.

Dr. M referred my husband to a urologist (Dr. P) to determine what was causing his low sperm count. Dr. P performed a physical exam in his office but did not find anything amiss. Dr. P said that we needed to do an ultrasound of my husband's reproductive organs, so we scheduled that procedure for the following week. That… [more]