Male Infertility

According to the World Health Organization and the International Committee Monitoring Assisted Reproductive Technologies (ICMART), failure to get pregnant is defined as clinical infertility if pregnancy is not established after 12 months or more of regular unprotected sexual intercourse. While either one or both of the partners may contribute to the reproductive challenges of the couple, male infertility, like female infertility, is a clinical diagnosis that can only be determined after formal assessment and testing.

Male infertility refers to a male’s inability to cause pregnancy in a fertile female. In humans, it accounts for 40–50% of infertility. It affects approximately 7% of all men. Male infertility is commonly due to deficiencies in the semen, and semen quality is used as a surrogate measure of male fecundity.