Options Before In Vitro Fertilization in Los Angeles & San Francisco, CA
If your path to parenthood has not been as straightforward as you thought it would be, male infertility expert Dr. Paul Turek of The Turek Clinic can provide guidance and reassurance when you need it most. The solution may be simpler and less invasive than what you and your partner were told by other medical providers or even fertility specialists.
Men are the primary issue or a contributing factor in approximately half of all couples who are having difficulty having a child. If male fertility issues are ignored or undiagnosed, even IVF may be unsuccessful. It is Dr. Turek’s firm belief that treating and curing male factor infertility is the most cost-effective way not only to achieve one successful pregnancy but also to build an entire family.
Maybe you have been advised to pursue in vitro fertilization or another type of assisted reproductive technology to conceive a child. Although procedures like IVF are powerful, they are not always necessary. Unfortunately, many couples turn to these very costly and invasive procedures early on, before considering other options and getting the quality male-factor care they deserve.
When it comes to fertility care, fixing the problem instead of bypassing it is often the simplest and most cost-effective way to conceive. Maybe you have been told that you have a sperm count of zero and that you need to find a sperm donor to have a child. Perhaps this was after a very invasive sperm extraction procedure that had lasting health consequences. That might not be the case at all; there may be usable sperm that can be extracted safely using more modern, innovative and less-invasive approaches.
Seeing Dr. Turek early on in your and your partner’s infertility journey can save you valuable time, money and heartache. Dr. Turek can provide accurate information about what is happening in your body, help you understand the biology of infertility, and chart a path to parenthood that avoids unnecessary stress, anxiety and invasive treatments. He will also work with female infertility specialists to understand and interpret problems on the woman’s end.
Reasons to Avoid IVF
Many of Dr. Turek’s patients prefer alternatives to IVF for the following reasons:
- Alternatives to IVF are typically much cheaper
- IVF is time-consuming and effort-intensive
- IVF can take a large physical and emotional toll on patients
- IVF is associated with increased risks for babies (prematurity, low birth weight, congenital birth defects; epigenetic disorders)
- IVF is associated with higher rates of multiple births (twins, triplets, etc.)
Although IVF remains a good option for many couples and the only option for others, Dr. Turek has found that it is generally worthwhile to explore the alternatives first.
Less May Be More When Looking for Sperm
Few things are more upsetting to a man than being told he has a zero sperm count and is sterile. Sometimes this diagnosis is not only disparaging and disappointing, but also inaccurate. Maybe the semen analysis was performed by an inexperienced laboratory, as opposed to a specialized laboratory that knows exactly what to look for and exactly how to do it. Or maybe sperm is being produced but not in numbers high enough to make it into the ejaculate. Just because a man’s ejaculate does not contain sperm does not mean that he has no sperm at all. Sperm are made in the testicles, gain motility and mature further along the reproductive tract before entering the ejaculate.
In addition, every man makes more sperm than he ejaculates. In other words, like a bucket filled with water, it will only spill over the edge when it is full. Dr. Turek can determine whether you have any sperm, anywhere, even if it is not making it into your ejaculate. He accomplishes this through a breakthrough technique called Sperm Mapping™.
Based on the Fine Needle Aspiration (FNA) technique, Sperm Mapping™ is an in-office procedure that uses small needles to take tiny samples from the testicles. The samples are then systematically examined under a microscope to look for the presence of sperm. According to a published study of the Sperm Mapping™ technique, there is a 60 percent chance of finding sperm if the patient has never had any other surgeries performed.
Other sperm extraction techniques such as microdissection are invasive and risky. They can lead to low testosterone for life, a condition that requires expensive, lifelong testosterone replacement therapy, including possibly weekly injections. These procedures can also damage the testicles to the point that it is difficult for Dr. Turek to help.
Not only is Sperm Mapping™ more effective than other sperm-location procedures, it is also considerably less invasive, less complicated, less stressful and less risky. Through Sperm Mapping™, Dr. Turek has helped thousands of men around the world facing severe infertility realize their dream of building a family.
Even if the reason you have no ejaculated sperm is that you have a blockage in the system with normal sperm production in the testicle, often IVF is recommended with sperm retrieval as your only option. But Dr. Turek, a world-class master microsurgeon, has been able to routinely “unblock” such systems with microsurgery and allow couples to conceive in the privacy of their own homes.
Clear Answers from an International Authority
If you have been told you need IVF or other invasive procedures to build your family, it might not be the case. For clear answers and guidance from one of the world’s foremost authorities on male infertility, contact The Turek Clinic and request a consultation with Dr. Paul Turek today.
