IVF for male infertility can help men and couples overcome a low sperm count

Learning you have a low sperm count can be discouraging, but it doesn’t have to stop you from welcoming a healthy baby. Our Austin fertility doctors offer IVF for male infertility to patients who have less than 10 million motile (alive and moving) sperm in their sample. In fact, the lower the motile sperm count, the more likely it is that the Texas Fertility Center (TFC) team will recommend in vitro fertilization for men.

Why should patients consider IVF for male infertility?

Motile sperm counts below 10 million per mL are less likely to produce a pregnancy. This is true for patients using timed intercourse and intrauterine insemination (IUI). In contrast, in vitro fertilization allows our laboratory team to combine each egg with a high concentration of highly motile sperm. This process drastically increases the likelihood that fertilization will occur.

Additionally, our embryologists can incorporate an advanced laboratory procedure when using IVF. This procedure is intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI). It involves injecting one healthy sperm into each egg. This step further increases the likelihood that a couple will have healthy embryos to transfer as part of IVF for men.

What are the steps of in vitro fertilization for men?

IVF for male infertility involves multiple steps for both the man and the woman. Our Austin fertility doctors will carefully guide each patient through this exciting, family-building process.

• The female partner will take medications for ovarian stimulation. The goal is to encourage her ovaries to safely produce as many eggs as possible.
• The woman will then undergo a short, outpatient procedure to retrieve her mature eggs before fertilization in the lab.
• The embryologists will combine the eggs with sperm that the male partner has provided on-site or at home. They may use ICSI to aid in the fertilization process.
• One of our Austin fertility doctors will transfer a resulting embryo to the female partner’s uterus and then monitor her for pregnancy.

If you would like to learn more about IVF for male infertility, contact us to schedule an appointment. The TFC team looks forward to answering your questions about treatment.