Premature Ovarian Failure and Infertility, Treatments in our Dallas Area Fertility Center
In about one-third of infertility cases, the cause relates to the female partner. When patients come to IVF Plano, Dr. James Douglas will complete a thorough evaluation to identify any issues that may be hindering pregnancy. Maternal age, physical abnormalities, hormonal imbalances and ovulatory dysfunction can all impact the ability to get pregnant. Premature ovarian failure is one type of ovulatory disruption that can make getting pregnant a challenge.
Approximately 1 in 100 women have premature ovarian failure.
What Is Premature Ovarian Failure?
When girls reach puberty and begin menstruation, their bodies usually release an egg during ovulation each cycle, approximately every 28 to 32 days. For most women, menstrual cycles begin in their early teens and continue until the onset of menopause, usually in their late 40s and early 50s. With premature ovarian failure, your ovaries stop working before age 40, producing few to no eggs after this point.
Causes of Premature Ovarian Failure
Sometimes, the exact cause of this condition may not be easily identifiable. Congenital abnormalities, hormone deficiencies, autoimmune disorders and damage from chemotherapy can contribute to premature ovarian failure.
Diagnosing Premature Ovarian Failure
If Dr. Douglas suspects ovulatory dysfunction, he may first ask about any symptoms you may have been experiencing, such as hot flashes, irregular or absent cycles, irritability, vaginal dryness and decreased sex drive. To confirm premature ovarian failure, he may order the following tests:
Follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) test: Unusually high levels of FSH in the blood could indicate premature ovarian failure.
Luteinizing hormone (LH) test: With premature ovarian failure, the level of LH is usually lower than the level of FSH.
Serum estradiol test: In women with premature ovarian failure, the blood level of estradiol, a type of estrogen, is often low.
Treatment Options for Premature Ovarian Failure
With this condition, achieving pregnancy from your own eggs is usually difficult. Typically, Dr. Douglas recommends in-vitro fertilization (IVF) with donor eggs. For this process, patients and their partners can work with a reputable donor agency to select the right egg donor. Once a donor has been selected, Dr. Douglas will sync the patient’s cycle with the egg donor’s, or he will arrange for frozen eggs to arrive for transfer during IVF. He will then retrieve the eggs, fertilize them in the laboratory with the partner’s sperm and transfer the resulting embryos.
IVF Plano Offers Hope for Overcoming Infertility
Although you may feel frustrated with your struggles to conceive, Dr. Douglas has the advanced training and expertise to identify and treat reproductive health issues, including premature ovarian failure. Contact our Dallas fertility clinic to schedule a consultation appointment.
