We have a plan! (TTCR)

[yellowbrkrd]

The GP board is slow and I've been doing the TTC check-ins so I thought I'd post here.

Backstory: We've been TTC for 15 months now. I've had all the typical testing done and a few weeks ago we found out DH has a low morphology rate.

We had our first RE appointment today! He feels like DH's numbers aren't too low and he has a very high count so it shouldn't be much of a factor for us. He is putting me on Clomid for 3 months and thinks we could have success with that. If that doesn't work we'll do Clomid + IUI. I'm feeling pretty good about it and so is DH. I'm excited and nervous to finally have some hope and have a plan.

[Deleted]

Yay for a plan! What is his morph? Morph is sort of a weird area where they don't know much about it yet.

[yellowbrkrd]

May 14, 2012 12:22:50 GMT -5 @notquiteblushing said:

Yay for a plan! What is his morph? Morph is sort of a weird area where they don't know much about it yet.

He is at 4%....the chart they showed us said 5-12(i think it was 12?) was normal.

We really thought they'd go straight to IUI for us.

[Deleted]

I'm not sure if you've seen this from the TTTC board but I figured I'd link it here since it has great info on SAs:

Semen Analysis:
Your husband/significant other should have an S/A done during the testing phase, even if you have already been diagnosed with another issue.

The World Health Organization (WHO)’s 2009 report considers the follow results “normal”:
Volume: 1.5ml or more
Concentration: 15 million or more (per ml)
Motility: 40% or higher
Morphology: 4% or higher* (this depends on the method they use. 15% or more used to be “normal” but that has been updated in the new report.

Here is the link to the WHO report for more detailed information:
www.who.int/reproductivehealth/topics/infertility/cooper_et_al_hru.pdf

And here’s a great discussion of the numbers (specifically morphology) from an RE at NYU: infertilityblog.blogspot.com/2010/07/sperm-morphology-new-guidelines.html

What do I do if our S/A comes back abnormal?
1. Repeat S/A. Have another S/A done several weeks apart because one test cannot give you a full picture and several lifestyle issues can effect sperm (including temporary illness).
2. See an urologist. Have YH see an urologist who specializes in fertility to see what if, anything can be done to improve the numbers. The urologist should be getting his entire medical history, S/A results and should be doing a physical exam and taking blood to test hormone levels, etc.
3. Consider vitamins/supplements. Some couples have found that vitamins/supplements have helped increase sperm quality/quantity. It is not a magic bullet, but it may help. Fertility Blend for Men is one we recommend (it's available online and at GNC stores). You might also look into: pycnogenol (especially for morphology), CoQ10 and L-arginine (which aren’t in Fertility Blend).
4. Consider lifestyle changes. Again, some couples have seen improvement in numbers when lifestyle changes were made. Quit smoking, decrease drinking, switch to boxer shorts, no hot tubs or hot computers on the lap, healthier diets, increased exercise, etc. Also, some men have seen success with acupuncture.

**Remember, it takes approximately 3 months from the time sperm is "born" to when it's released so any lifestyle/medical/vitamin changes will take three months to show up in a sperm analysis. And if YH was sick 3 months before your S/A, it may affect the results.

[yellowbrkrd]

Thanks! We've done quite a bit of research, he's trying to live a healthier lifestyle and we plan to pick up some vitamins/supplements this week.

[Deleted]

Fingers crossed! Good luck!

[CloudBee]

The TTGP board is SO snarky. I can't take it. We should do a check-in thread here every few days.