Approximately 6.1 million couples in the United States ‑-
or 10 percent of all couples of childbearing age ‑- have
difficulty conceiving, according to the National Women's Health
Resource Center (NWHRC).
About one-third of infertility cases can be attributed to
males, another one-third to females and the remaining one-third to
both members of a couple. At least 10 percent of infertility cases
go unexplained, although these couples often later succeed in
becoming pregnant.
Ovulation abnormalities and sperm deficiencies are responsible
for two-thirds of infertility problems.
About 20 percent of infertility cases are the result of
fallopian tube disease, according to the NWHRC.
Between 30 and 40 percent of women with endometriosis are infertile,
according to the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
The sexually transmitted
diseases (STDs) chlamydia and gonorrhea are the most important
preventable causes of infertility, according to the U.S. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Between 75 and 85 percent of fertility problems are diagnosed after a patient's
initial evaluation.
Most women are about 30 percent less fertile in their late 30s
than they were in their early 20s, according to the National
Women's Health Resource Center.
In 85 to 90 percent of all cases, infertility is treated with
either medication or surgery, according to the NWHRC. Just 5
percent of infertility treatments involve in vitro fertilization or
other kinds of assisted reproductive technologies, in which a
laboratory is used to try to help a couple become pregnant.
More than 70,000 babies have been born in the United States
using assisted reproductive technologies, including 45,000 born as
a result of in vitro fertilization, according to the NWHRC.
Women are most fertile during ovulation, which occurs around
the 14th day of their menstrual cycle. However, the exact time of
ovulation varies among women due to normal differences in the
length of the menstrual cycle.
When no fertility problems are present, the average couple
between ages 29 and 33 has about a 20 to 25 percent chance of
becoming pregnant during any given menstrual cycle, according to
the NWHRC.
The greatest odds of fertilization occur in the first 12 hours
after the sperm are ejaculated in the vagina. However, sperm can
fertilize the egg for up to 72 hours after ejaculation.
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