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Female Infertility - Overview

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You're Not Alone

Infertility is often defined as not being able to get pregnant in spite of having frequent, unprotected sex for at least a year. If you and your partner are experiencing difficulty becoming pregnant, you are not on your own. As much as 10-15% of couples in the United States are infertile.

If you've been trying to conceive for more than a year, there's a chance that something may be interfering with your efforts to have a child. Infertility may be attributed to one issue in either you or your partner, or a variety of factors may prevent a pregnancy from occurring or continuing.

A rule of thumb, unless you have been trying to conceive for over a year, do not be overly concerned with your fertility. Some exceptions to this rule include the following:

• If you are a woman older than 30 and wish to conceive or if you haven't had a menstrual flow for longer than six months, request a medical evaluation.

• If you have a past of erratic or painful menstrual cycles, pelvic pain, pelvic inflammatory disease (PID), endometriosis or recurring miscarriages, schedule an appointment with your doctor sooner. In some cases an infertile woman may have irregular menstrual periods.