Why does sperm injection fail many times?

Intrauterine insemination (IUI) is an assisted conception technique for infertile couples due to mild sperm abnormalities or unexplained infertility, endometriosis... , this assisted reproductive technique has a low success rate. So why does the sperm pump fail many times?

Intrauterine insemination - Intrauterine insemination (IUI) is a method of filtering and washing the best quality and healthy sperm from the husband, then this amount of sperm will be pumped into the uterus of the wife through through a conduit. The method of sperm injection into the uterus helps sperm to overcome obstacles in the vaginal environment to enter the nearest suitable position, thereby helping to have a higher success rate of conception.

Intrauterine insemination method is indicated for infertile couples or those who want to have children but have the following problems:
Men have problems with ejaculation, poor quality sperm, poor sperm motility, malformed sperm...; Females with uterine problems, a highly acidic vaginal environment that is detrimental to sperm, blocked fallopian tubes, pelvic infections or severe endometriosis...; Same-sex couples who want to have children (donor sperm) who want to be single mothers. SEE ALSO: Failed insemination (IUI), how long can it be done again?

The average success rate of intrauterine insemination is about 15% (8-22%), so a few cycles of IUI should be repeated, if multiple inseminations fail (average). about 3 times) should switch to another treatment method (in vitro fertilization method, success rate 40-45%). Some factors associated with IUI failure are the condition of the fallopian tubes and the quality of sperm on the day of IUI technique.
Intrauterine insemination can be considered as the first step in the journey of infertility treatment. The outstanding advantage of this technique is that it is simple, cheap, easy to apply, has few complications and is widely applied. However the low success rate is a drawback of this method, according to which the failure rate of IUI depends on many factors such as:
3.1. Wife's age Women's ability to get pregnant is highest at the age of 20 - 30 years old, then a woman's fertility will decrease over time, the older she gets, the more difficult it is to conceive. In addition to increasing the rate of IUI failure, the older a woman is, the greater the risk of complications during pregnancy and childbirth, and the rate of miscarriage and birth defects is much higher in women above 40 years old. Therefore, in order to save money, time and increase the high success rate when performing intrauterine insemination, couples should perform IUI at a young age.

3.2. Infertility time According to some statistical studies, the longer the couple's infertile time, the lower the chance of successful sperm injection treatment. The success rate is highest when the couple's infertility period is less than 2 years and this rate will decrease markedly after 6 years of marriage. Therefore, couples who have lived together for more than 1 year, have sex 2-3 times a week, do not use contraception but still have no good news should go to the doctor, this helps. early detection of infertility causes for timely treatment or selection of appropriate assisted reproductive methods.
3.3. Sperm quality Sperm, after being carefully filtered to select the healthiest sperm, will be pumped into the woman's uterus. This is a very important step, the failure of many times to pump sperm can be due to the quality of the sperm not reaching the quantity or quality.
The technique of injecting sperm into the uterus has certain requirements for sperm quality such as: sperm density from 10 to 20 million, motile sperm ratio over 30%, motile sperm count after filter wash over 5 million. If sperm quality does not meet the above indicators, this is most likely the cause of repeated sperm injection failures.

3.4. Medical facilities that perform IUI are not qualified. Although intrauterine insemination is a simple procedure, the success rate of this technique is also affected by the skill of the medical staff and the quality of life. With the facilities of the place of implementation, couples should choose medical facilities that perform IUI with a guarantee of prestige to limit failures, which are costly in terms of money and dedication of couples.

Before deciding whether to perform intrauterine insemination or not, couples must have a clinical examination to check their health, check the uterus and fallopian tubes in women and sperm quality in men. Thereby, the doctor will determine the cause of infertility and decide whether to proceed with IUI method or not. The IUI process includes the following steps:
Ovarian stimulation: the doctor monitors the eggs, then injects ovulation-stimulating drugs to create eggs. Usually, 3-4 follicles need to be prepared for IUI. Sperm preparation: sperm collection at the hospital or at home (recommended at the hospital), if collected at home, the sperm must be brought to the hospital within 30-45 minutes. Then the sperm will be washed to select the strongest, most mobile sperm and then condensed into a very small volume. Intrauterine Insemination: The doctor uses a catheter inserted through the vagina to the uterus, where sperm is injected into the uterus through this tube.

Some experiences to help the process of sperm injection into the uterus successfully are as follows:
After pumping sperm into the uterine cavity, a woman often feels fullness in the abdomen, vomiting or urinating less, if there is any any other symptoms that need to be discussed with the follow-up doctor immediately; After pumping sperm, the woman should not exercise vigorously, but should rest in place for 20-30 minutes, then walk gently. Add water, fruits and foods rich in zinc, iron, folic acid; Always keep the spirit comfortable, relax, avoid self-pressure, good mood will create the most favorable conditions for sperm to meet ovum and fertilize. Do not swim for 48 hours after pumping; Scheduled follow-up examination; After 2 weeks of insemination, use a pregnancy test or blood test to confirm pregnancy. In summary, there are many factors that lead to IUI failure, if this happens, couples need to wait 3 menstrual cycles before trying again. In case you try 3 times and still fail, you must use another support method.
Reproductive Support Center - Vinmec International General Hospital is the leading center in Vietnam built and applied a treatment process that combines comprehensive examination, combining both male and female obstetrics and gynecology to give birth to children. determine the optimal method for each patient's case.
Advantages when customers choose infertility treatment - late at Vinmec Fertility Center include:
The center is home to a team of leading experts in the field of domestic and international infertility, trained at the world's leading assisted reproductive centers. A team of highly qualified and experienced doctors. Implement most advanced assisted reproductive techniques in the world such as ICSI (injection of sperm into the oocyte); support embryo escape membrane; Reproductive reserve: embryo freezing, sperm freezing, oocyte freezing to help customers take the initiative in giving birth at will, transferring embryos on day 5, minimizing pregnancy; male infertility techniques (PESA, MESA, TEFNA, TESE) Modern equipment system, ensuring absolute sterility, single cabinet system optimizes embryo quality, increases success rate. The Reproductive Support Center also receives technical support from many departments in the Vinmec International General Hospital system such as the Pediatric Center, the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, etc., constantly updating and developing new techniques. in infertility treatment.