What we forget when we talk about babies: Male fertility

Misconceptions about masculinity and fertility can worsen the situation. Let's get a conversation going.

- Huang Zhongwei

Male-related fertility issues are behind half the cases of couples struggling to have babies. This could be on account of low sperm count, sperm that are not shaped properly, sperm motility problems or a blockage in the male reproductive tract that keeps sperm from getting out.

The irony: Sometimes it is efforts by men to look more masculine that cause these problems. In any case, male infertility is not discussed often enough but it is an issue that needs to be addressed because, in many cases, it can be prevented if the right information is disseminated.

So what are the medical issues that need to be addressed?

In a local study comparing 218 infertile men with 240 fertile men whose wives were pregnant at the time of the study, it was found that the infertile men had a much lower concentration of sperm—14.8 million/ml—compared with their fertile counterparts, who had an average sperm concentration of 44 million/ml.

At the National University Hospital (NUH), preliminary data from a study of 900 couples undergoing assisted reproductive techniques revealed that about 85 per cent of men had one or more abnormalities on semen analyses, such as abnormal sperm concentration, motility and morphology.

Although the statistics are real, male fertility issues remain a taboo and are rarely discussed openly. Why is this so? Both ignorance and embarrassment play a part.

Mr J, a 36-year-old finance adviser, has been planning to start a family with his 33-year-old wife, Ms L. They have been married for two years but they have both been busy with planning for their new home and career progression.

To de-stress, Mr J goes to the gym regularly, and finds that keeping in top form with a muscular physique boosts his confidence at work and intimate moments with his wife, while trying for a child. However, the couple have not been successful despite regularly trying over the last 14 months.