Male infertility occurs in about half of the cases of the absence of a desired pregnancy. Diagnosis of disorders of male reproductive function is simpler, requires fewer medical interventions, and in most cases is cheaper than diagnosis of female infertility. Therefore, if a married couple does not manage to conceive a child within six months, the examination should start with the husband.

In the vast majority of cases, a decrease in the fertilizing ability of sperm is asymptomatic. That is, all external indicators of men's health remain unchanged, and a man may not even suspect that he has problems.

Diagnosis of male infertility

In order to make sure that everything is fine on his part, or to diagnose any health problems, a man should submit his sperm for analysis . Before submitting sperm for analysis, it is necessary to refrain from sexual life, refuse to use alcohol and antibiotics, do not visit the sauna, and avoid increased physical and psychogenic stress for 3-5 days. The fact is that sperm has a high degree of lability and can change its characteristics under the influence of external factors. A spermogram is a very informative method of diagnosis.
A man's sperm is considered capable of fertilization if 1 ml of the examined sample contains 15 million spermatozoa, of which at least half must be actively motile.

What are the causes of male infertility?

The causes of male infertility can be very different:

• abnormalities of testicular development: aplasia, hypoplasia, cryptorchidism, varicocele;
• infectious and inflammatory diseases: chlamydia, rubella, gonorrhea, mumps, trichomoniasis, herpes;
• chromosomal anomalies;
• disruption of the removal of spermatozoa through the vas deferens resulting from an inflammatory lesion, agenesis, trauma, retrograde ejaculation and for some other reasons;
• the body's reaction to the harmful effects of the environment: exposure to temperatures (both low and high), toxic effects of nicotine, alcohol, chemicals, some types of drugs, etc.

In order to clarify the conclusions about the causes of male infertility, in addition to the spermogram, additional studies may be needed: ultrasound, bacteriological/bacterioscopic studies of prostate secretion.
Sometimes the cause of male infertility is hormonal, psychogenic, vascular diseases. The help of a therapist, endocrinologist, psychologist may be needed to identify and eliminate these causes.