Secondary sterility

Before focusing on knowing the meaning of secondary sterility, it is necessary to know that sterility and infertility are not synonymous. Commonly both terms are used as synonyms, but there are significant differences.

Below you have an index with all the points that we will discuss in this article.

Index

Secondary sterility

• 1. Causes
• 2. When to act

Sterility refers to the impossibility of achieving pregnancy. That is, for some reason the sperm is not able to reach the ovule, fertilize it or the embryo formed is not able to reach the implantation in the endometrium (this occurs around 6-7 days of embryonic development), so it does not you get to achieve pregnancy. While infertility is the inability of the pregnancy to come to term and a healthy baby is born. With infertility, pregnancy is achieved, but there is a miscarriage or pregnancy does not reach the end with the birth of the baby.

Therefore, we speak of secondary sterility when a couple does not achieve pregnancy, but previously they had a child together. To be completely secondary, it is necessary that both members of the couple are the parents of the previous child.

Socially, secondary sterility is not considered a problem as serious as primary, since at least they have managed to have a child previously. Although, for those who have never considered it difficult to have a child, it is very stressful not being able to raise the family. These patients often feel misunderstood by relatives and doctors because they do not perceive the problem as something so serious.

Causes

Usually, both secondary and primary sterility have the same causes. They are usually due to fertility problems in men, women or both. To achieve pregnancy one must reach a certain reproductive potential, this potential is the sum of the reproductive capacity of man and woman.

Fertility problems are aggravated by the time of sterility and also with age, the majority of secondary sterility is caused by alterations in the fertility of women. Time "punishes" more female fertility, so that the most common causes of sterility should be added advanced maternal age, sexually transmitted diseases and health disorders from a previous pregnancy. Such as diabetes, hyperprolactinemia (increased production of breast milk), hormonal changes caused by thyroid, disorders with ovulation, endometriosis, uterine fibroids ...

Sometimes, this type of sterility arises from having less recommended life habits, such as weight gain after childbirth, smoking, stress, extreme physical exercise ... since these factors can diminish the seminal quality or reproductive capacity of women by creating alterations in fertility.

When to act

Usually couples who have had a child, do not think they may have difficulties in getting a new pregnancy, since they consider that they have tested their fertility, both are fertile, so it can be difficult to know when to go to the doctor . If after more than a year of trying, pregnancy does not occur, you should go to a fertility clinic, but also the age of the woman plays an important role. For example, if the woman is 38 years old, it is not necessary to wait a year, if after 6 months they have not gotten it, they should visit the doctor and explain their case. Since the ovarian reserve is not the same with 30 as with 38 years, each year that passes will be more difficult to achieve pregnancy. Physiologically, after 27 years the quality of the ovules begins to decrease, but at a slow rate, at 35 years there is a significant decrease in female fertility, the oocyte quality decreases at a higher rate.

For what could be taken as age limit of action these 35 years. If the woman is younger than 35 years, it would act as in primary sterility, one year would be expected looking for pregnancy without getting it before visiting the doctor. While if the woman is older than 35, they should try 6 months before making an appointment at a fertility center.