Question

What is infertility? Give reasons for infertility in humans.

Answer 1

Infertility occurs in both men and women, although it has traditionally been blamed on women for infertility when a partner is childless. For many couples, especially in India, having children of their own is a very important event in their life. The inability to do this causes people great stress and emotional pain.

Complete answer:
Let’s first answer the first part of the question
Infertility-Infertility is the inability to get pregnant. However, a precise definition is not possible because there are different degrees of infertility.
Now we learn about infertility causes in both males and females

Infertility causes in females
-Ovulation Failure: The inability to ovulate is one of the most common causes of infertility in women. This is because the pituitary or hypothalamus does not produce the FSH, which is needed for follicular development, or LH, which is needed to release an egg from the ovary. It may also be because the ovaries don't produce oestrogen or progesterone. Hormone imbalance can be corrected by administering synthetic hormones to the affected person.
-Due to blockage of fallopian tube-The oviduct is blocked or narrow in size in some women. This prevents the movement of the eggs and as a consequence fertilisation is also prevented. This problem can be resolved by laser surgery.
-Due to damage of uterus-In some cases, infertility due to damage of uterus. In such cases the uterus is not able to maintain pregnancy. It means the implantation of zygote doesn’t occur.
-Due to damage of cervix-When cervix is damaged either due to difficult birth or abortion .This condition also leads to infertility.

Infertility causes in males
-Azoospermia- Absence of sperms within the semen is understood as azoospermia. This might occur as a result of lack of gamete production or as a result of blocked tubes.
Infertility is also caused due to Oligospermia and Abnormal Sperms. Oligospermia is a condition in which sperm count is very low.
-Premature Ejaculation and Impotence-When male is not able to erect its penis is called impotence. In premature ejaculation semen is released before penetration into vagina.

Note: In few cases treatment of infertility occurs with assisted reproductive technology (ART). It is a collection of medical procedures that involve extracting eggs from a woman's body and extracting sperm from a man's body to manipulate them in a way that increases the chances of conception. Eggs and sperm can be injected into one of the woman's fallopian tubes for in vivo (in the body) fertilization. However, more often than not, the egg and sperm mix outside the body, so that fertilization occurs in vitro (in a test tube or laboratory vessel). With in vitro fertilization, a fertilized egg can develop into an embryo before being placed in a woman's uterus.