Female subfertility: an overview

Dr Jane Stewart
Newcastle

Endocrine Nurses Training Course 2005, John MacIntyre Centre, The University of Edinburgh, 18 Holyrood Park Road, Edinburgh EH16 5AY, UK
30 August - 1 September 2005

The aim of this talk is to give a summary of female subfertility but in context both of the Endocrine Nurse group but also current points of interest.

Female subfertility represents over half of the factors associated with a couples failure to conceive. It is important however to consider both members of the partnership before embarking on complex investigations and treatments. A summary of the general approach to fertility investigation will be given.

Of the female causes of subfertility ovulatory disorders remain the commonest and of these the most prevalent of course is polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS). This is the subject of a preceding lecture and therefore will not be addressed in detail although there will be a brief discussion of the techniques available for ovulation induction for a variety of disorders.

The future of female subfertility includes the problem of sexual health and the concern regarding tubal disorders, of childhood obesity and its potential relationship to PCOS and the trend towards delaying families and the issue of increasing female age in relation to fertility. It is this final point which will be discussed in more detail with reference to the effects of aging on reproduction, the assessment of future fertility and the potential for fertility preservation both in practical and ethical terms.

Revised: 16-Sep-2005