It was my Husband

[TJ_P]

Hello. I'm new to the forum. It was 2013 when the doctors revealed my husband was infertile. The diagnosis explained the 5 years of negative pregnancy tests and dashed dreams, but did not explain the cause of my husband's infertility. I was wondering if there were any other women whose husband's diagnosis has never been explained.

[Maggieisthebest]

Hi there. Our fertility issues are male factor related, condition called obstructive azoospermia. Meaning a blockage somewhere. Our ivf clinic didn't explain or investigate this any further as their priority was to start the icsi treatment asap.....so we explored this privately and it helped answer a lot of questions just from the initial consultation with a qualified andrologist. We went ahead with invasive investigations and a procedure but unfortunately for us it didn't work and we know why. However, I am so glad we explored this option as we would have always been wondering what if. ICSI (if treatment) is our only form of getting pregnant and I feel at peace with that. Good luck on your journey and don't hesitate to ask any questions. X

[TJ_P in reply to Maggieisthebest]

We had the surgery as well and they did not find any sperm. How did you cope?

[NCS88]

Hi there - my husband is infertile also - obstructive Azoospermia . The GP tests would not reveal much so we took matters into our own hands and went to see a specialist who diagnosed the cause. We paid privately. The treatment plan is still the same but we feel better knowing the cause and also can plan tests for me too (it’s genetic) to try and prevent any bad outcomes. Hope it all goes well for you. PM me if you need any more info xx

[Kyell2]

Yep, we have the same issue.

I don’t think that it’s that normal anymore to be told you have male infertility but not be told the reason.

What tests have they done? Is it possible to have any further investigation?

Good luck x

[TJ_P in reply to Kyell2]

We did the surgery and it was unsuccessful. We also had genetic testing. They found a broken chromosome, but they could not attribute it to anything. So, we were still left with questions.

[Kyell2 in reply to TJ_P]

Ah ok. That is the exact same situation as us then.

We too had an unsuccessful surgery because a bit of his 21st chromosome broke off. He lost almost nothing genetically but that tiny breakage interrupted his sperm production.

There is no answer as to why it happened and no way to fix it. Just bad luck for us.

I’m so sorry that you are having to go through this, it’s pretty rubbish 😔

[TJ_P in reply to Kyell2]

Wow. Well its good to know it's just not us. I kept having questions in term of how can a chromosome just "break off." How have coped with it?

[Kyell2 in reply to TJ_P]

I know, we had a lot of ‘why us’ moments as well.

The genetic counsellor told us that the chromosome breakage would have happened at embryo stage. That breakage wasn’t what caused the infertility but they said that any minor dna change can cause sperm interruption.

We have had quite a bit of time to process this now and have moved forward. I guess we don’t really have a choice x

[hoping-for-the-best]

For us it’s male antisperm antibodies and high DNA fragmentation, meaning a high level of chromosomally abnormal sperm. The antibody issue doesn’t show up on the standard NHS semen analysis so was only diagnosed once we were referred to the fertility clinic - after over two years of invasive tests for me and no answers except to “relax and keep trying”. The DNA fragmentation we only did recently and at our own initiative due to the multiple failed rounds. For some reason the doctors aren’t that helpful when it comes to male issues, so you really have to be your own advocate.

In your case it’s strange that they seem to have a diagnosis for him but can’t tell you why, is it an actual diagnosis or an assumption? x

[TJ_P in reply to hoping-for-the-best]

That was my concern. We did take a family assessment and try to see if anyone in his family had any issue with conceiving and we could not find any. That was one thing our doctor suggest as a way to further investigate.

[Ladypii]

Hello

My husband has non-obstructive Azoospermia. We had private tests and did a lot of our own research (endless hours of googling and reading scientific research studies). If you want a bit more closure maybe try contacting Dr Ramsey (he is based in London) with all your test results, he is supposed to be the leader in this field with an excellent understanding of all variants of male factor infertility and a great deal of empathy. I know you have already had SSR but maybe he can try to explain things to you more clearly. It’s unfortunate that the nhs can not provide this kind of service but their main focus is life saving treatment and often infertility is not a top priority for them. If you can afford just one private consultation appointment it might give you the closure you need.

Xx