SA

[Happilymarried155]

Hi,
Dh just had sa results, everything us really good apart from morphology which is 1%, do we have anychance of concieving naturally?

I would say yes! If everything else was ok then 1% of his total count is still a fair few ood swimmers and at the end of the day you only need 1 of that 1% of millions to do it's job. It may take time, it may happen straight away-either way, I wouldn't say you have no chance f it happening.

Happily - my hub has 1% morphology too. We are waiting results of second SA. Happy to be your buddy of u need one.

That would be fab winkle I think from previous threads our situations are very similar! Have had hsg now too and everything seems fine, dh got another SA coming up but I've been pumping him full of vitamins so hoping these might have improved them abit! What's your next step?

What's the HSG? Wondering whether or not I've had that yet. [hconfused]

Hub has had second SA done so we're waiting for the results. And we are seeing the doctors next week to get referred as I want to talk to an expert!

Thinking of going to this this weekend but not sure if it's worth it considering we are going to the docs next week: www.fertilityshow.co.uk/.

Good luck with your OH's SA.

It's the one where they see if you tubes are blocked. We have had all the tests now and all the doctors say that there are no problems to stop us concieving so sent us away to try for another six months. I was upset at first, another 6 months seems like such a long time, but I've decided to embrace these six months with lots is sex, fun nights, glasses of wine and a fab holiday and if it happens then great, if not we start iui in April!

How long have you been trying?

I need to have the HSG done, I think that's the next step. I've had bloods taken (which came back fine apart from low red blood cell count so need more iron in my diet) and the pelvic scan which came back clear too.

I'm on month 15 of trying and I don't belive it's going to happen naturally for us. I'm gearing up for IUI/IVF. Still shagging away though, what else can we do?

Been trying for 19 long months now!

Fingers crossed for both of us that it isn't too much longer, when I got upset in the fertility clinic the doctor said he was pretty sure we wouldn't need our iui appointment in April so I'm clinging on to that and trying not to stress!!! :)

15 months for us!

Did the docs say it was down to the morphology?

I mean is that the reason they said it was taking long?

No, all the doctors we have seen say that although its low, it's not going to make a difference and shouldn't affect out fertility! As long as everything else is ok; count etc....

Ok this gives me hope :)

He seems to think we are just unlucky and it's taking us longer than most, I have a friend how had been trying for 20 months and she announced she was pregnant yesterday, have me hope :)

Ah that's good news for your friend.

I go on the babycentre boards too and a woman there got her BFP after 15 months and her husband has 1% morphology too...

Happily have you had the results of your second sa yet?

We had our results back and Hubby's morphology has gone up :) Only from 1% to 2% but at least we are getting somewhere!

He was really great. Told us we are doing all the right things and to keep going but he'll refer us for IVF if we want to.

He said everything is fine with me but I need to have chlamydia test and a smear before I get referred and he's sending my husband for blood tests and a liver function test because we talked about the way my husband had been drinking in the past and the doctor said it was way over the recommended allowance.

It's been so good for OH to see the effects of him cutting down on drinking and he's come home now and downloaded an app to ensure he stays within 21 units and he has said he's not going to let Christmas ruin his hard work.

So fingers crossed it wont be long now!

That's good news, dh SA isn't for another few weeks so we will have to wait and see! I hoping it will have improved abit as he has been taking more zinc and some tree bark stuff that is meant to be good for morphology, so I'm desperate for that to work! I'm so pleased your dh had been better :)

How long do you have to wait to referred for Ivf?

My OH takes:

zinc and vit C
wellman conception
insitol (can't remember spelling but it helps cells grow)

He was taking pine bark extract but he stopped... not sure why? Think its because he read insitol was better.

Also his count went up from 35 million to 48 million! 2% of 43 mil is better than 1% of 34 mil! So really don't think we'll be waiting much longer.

We have to have been trying for 2 years. The docs said he was happy to write that we'd been trying for 2 years if we wanted. But as we only get one go, I don't want to waste it when I can see that lifestyle improvements do work.

Might have to save that one go when I'm a bit older!

Make sure you keep me posted with your OH's results and GOOD LUCK :D

That's exactly what we thought, it's been 20 months now here, if rather wait another six months naturally. As the fertility doctor said we have more chance getting pregnant naturally within the next six months than we will have doing iui so we may as well wait an extra few months. With Christmas n things in the middle it will fly by and then if I'm not pregnant by then at least I know I have done everything I can!!!

Will let you know dh SA, fingers crossed they improve as much as your dh that's fab!!!! I'm 3 days away from AF, not holding out much hope at the moment as I ovulated the same day as my hsg so I don't think we stand much hope this month! Maybe next month tho!!!

I think we're going to assess in the new year about our other options. I think OH should have another SA in feb (so another 3 months) and then we decide from there. Been married 2 years in April so if nothing by then then maybe we look at next steps.

I can't have a lap and dye till I get referred :( I'll be annoyed if I've got a blockage and I had to wait 2 years to find out!

Any idea why your OH's morphology is low? I'm 99% my husbands is due to drinking too much.

No he is super healthy, rarely drinks and eats well. The doctor did say you shouldn't judge from 1 SA as this can sometimes be inaccurate, will be interesting to see what the next one says!!!

Hopefully the next SA will show that the first one was wrong :)

Fingers crossed!!! :)

Hi all

Just to give you our experience of 1% morphology - we have had three rounds of ICSI and we are 34 and 35. We have had lots of testing across of three cycles to really start ticking boxes. Whilst I agree that it only takes one and if the count and motility is really good ( as my hubby's has been) this is positive, we have found that we can significantly increase all the other stats about make sperm but morphology is likely to change very little. We have recently opted for testicular sperm recovery for our 4th cycle - since we have moved to a London Ivf clinic we are finally understanding the likely cause of our male factor infertility. Following the op our male specialist consultant (introduced to us by our Ivf clinic and only one of two specialists in the country) confirmed he could SEE the problem, the sperm still have very tapered heads, bent necks and whilst there was normal to collect this still needs a method called IMSE - a very powerful microscope to ensure they are genuinely normal!
I am a big believer in trying naturally and taking the pressure off and we too were happy to try ourselves for some time, this consultant has confirmed to us however that it much less likely that we would conceive naturally - and actually we had had three failed ICSI cycles - when we know the best 'looking' sperm was injected into the egg. My advice would be with very port morphology - do not waste time doing cycles without a very through level of additional testing. Ensure you have IMSE, ensure you have array CGH generic testing in the embryos - as they likelihood is although you may get pregnant through ICSI ( and we did on our third cycle) The abnormalities of the sperm may still be too much for the egg to repair and hence the embryo dosent thrive (hence Mis carrying)
Sorry to add a more negative spin on this - but if there is one thing I promised myself is that I'd share my experience with others to ensure they are aware of the possible extra boxes it is worth kicking sooner than later to save others going through three plus cycles which in hindsight had little chane of working!! My advice would be, ask your Ivf clinic for a lot of detail about make factor infertility as many are keen to get you cycling without being specific enough to your needs. The London clinics really do seen to be much better connected to specialists who can really fine tune your treatment.
Our first cycle was free, second cost 6k, third 10k and this next one 14k - goodness knows how anyone is expected to afford this journey, but I would say if we had started with the cycle we are about to embark on, although it may be the most expensive - we would have saved an awful lot of money we have spent reaching this point!
Hope this is somewhat insightful and please don't let our story out you off a period of trying naturally, but I would say IvF, IUI really is a waste of time with very low morphology from what we have learnt. ICSI is a must and the extra tests i mention are well worth looking into!
:-)

Thx for sharing your story lucky but it's worried me now. Am I wasting my time working on hub improving his morphology and go straight for a referral?

If we are not pregnant within the next 6 months then I will insist on some more of these tests. They will not see us again until it has been over two years! :-(
Thanks for sharing your story and good luck :)

I must admit - we lied with how long we had been trying.

I think the key thing is. Try naturally and do what feels right for you at the time. Then if you find yourself needing Ivf/ICSI make sure you ask for more of the boxes to be ticked early on.

I personally really wouldn't bother with IUI with low morphology especially if time is not on your side.

Everyone's journey is different though, but i have learnt alot by reading about people's experiences and knowing what to ask for.

Good luck ladies and do shout if you ever want to ask more questions :-)