BIOLOGY INVESTIGATORY
PROJECT
INFERTILITY:
CAUSES AND TREATMENT
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Kendriya Vidyalaya
Gandhigram
BIOLOGY PROJECT WORK
DONE AND SUBMITTED BY
P.Sanjay
IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF REQUIREMENTS FOR CLASS XII COURSE
2022-2023
SUPERVISED BY:
Mrs.Florence
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CERTIFICATE
This is to certify that the project work on ‘‘Causes of
Infertility in humans’’ based on the curriculum of
CBSE has been completed by P.Sanjay of class XII
studying in Kendriya Vidyalaya Dindigul. The above-
mentioned project work has been completed under my
guidance during the academic year 2024-25.
Signature of Teacher: Signature of Principal:
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Acknowledgement
I wish to express my deep gratitude and sincere thanks to the
principal Dr.K.Murugeshwaran, PM Shri Kendriya Vidyalaya Dindigul
for his encouragement and for all the facilities that he provided for
this project work. I sincerely appreciate this magnanimity by taking
me into his fold for which I shall remain indebted to him. I extend my
hearty thanks to Mrs.Florence Biology Teacher, who guided me to
the successful completion of this project. I take this opportunity to
express my deep sense of gratitude for her valuable guidance,
constant encouragement, immense motivation, which has sustained
my efforts at all the stages of this Project work.
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INDEX
S.NO TITLE PAGE NO
1. INTRODUCTION 6
2. THEORY 7
3. EFFECTS 8
4. CAUSES 9-12
5. TYPES OF 13
INFERTILITY
6. TREATMENT 14-15
7. CONCLUSION 16
8. BIBILOGRAPHY 17
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INTRODUCTION
When a man or woman is incapable to contribute fully to
pregnancy even after insecure coitus, it is referred to as infertility.
Reason for
infertility may be known or unknown. Mostly ovulation variation in
women is the main reason for infertility. In males, insufficient
sperm production or genetic defects etc., are the reasons for
infertility.
Women who are fertile experience a natural period of fertility before
and during ovulation, and they are naturally infertile during the rest
of the
menstrual cycle. Fertility awareness methods are used to discern
when these changes occur by tracking changes in cervical mucus or
basal body temperature.
So, it is very important to be educated about infertility and its causes
and
how it is possible to solve infertility with the help of assisted
reproductive
technology. There a number of reasons for infertility including
congenital, drugs, diseases, immunological or sometimes
psychological. A person affected by any of the above reasons can
suffer from infertility.
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THEORY
Primary vs. Secondary Infertility
Primary infertility is defined as the absence of a live birth for women
who desire a child and have been in a union for at least five years,
during which they have not used any contraceptives. The World
Health Organization also adds that 'women whose pregnancy
spontaneously miscarries, or whose pregnancy results in a still born
child, without ever having had a live birth would present with
primarily infertility
Secondary infertility is defined as the absence of a live birth for
women who desire a child and have been in a union for at least five
years since their last live birth, during which they did not use any
contraceptives.
Thus, the distinguishing feature is whether or not the couple have ever
had a pregnancy which led to a live birth.
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Psychological Impact
Infertility may have profound psychological effects. Partners may
become more anxious to conceive, increasing sexual dysfunction
marital discord often develops in infertile couples, especially when
they are under pressure to make medical decisions. Women trying to
conceive often have clinical depression rates similar to women who
have heart disease or cancer. Even couples undertaking IVF face
considerable stress.
Social Impact
As for the social impact of infertility, in many cultures across our
country, childless women face discrimination, ostracism and
stigma if they fail to become pregnant or carry a baby to term. The
situation is further worsened by the fact that such women face a
lack of support, both emotionally from their own families and
financially as well. Exposed to a tremendous social pressure,
infertile couples may resort to hiding the problem due to the
extreme privacy of the matter.
CAUSES
Sexually Transmitted Diseases
Sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) are infections transmitted
from an infected person to an uninfected person through sexual
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contact. STDs can be caused by bacteria, viruses, or parasites.
Examples include gonorrhea, genital herpes, human papillomavirus
infection, HIV/AIDS, chlamydia, and syphilis.
Genetic Disorder
Genetic causes of infertility include chromosomal aberrations,
single gene variants, and phenotypes with multifactorial
inheritance.
DNA Damage
• DNA damage reduces fertility in female oocytes, as caused by
smoking.
• DNA damage reduces fertility in male sperm, as caused by
oxidative DNA damage, smoking. Or other DNA damaging
agents including reactive oxygen species, fever or high testicular
temperature.
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General Factors
Diabetes mellitus, thyroid disorders, undiagnosed and untreated
coeliac disease adrenal disease
• Hypothalamic-pituitary factors
• Hypopituitarism
• Environmental factors
• Toxins such as glues, volatile organic solvents or silicones, physical
agents, chemical dusts, and pesticides Tobacco smokers are 60%
more likely to be infertile than non-smokers.
FEMALE
The following causes of infertility may only be found in females. For
a woman to conceive, certain things have to happen: intercourse must
take place around the time when an egg is released from her ovary;
the system that produces eggs has to be working at optimum levels;
and her hormones must be balanced.
For women, problems with fertilization arise mainly from either
structural problem in the Fallopian tube or uterus or problems
releasing eggs. Another major cause of infertility in women may be
the inability to ovulate.
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Other factors that can affect a woman's chances of conceiving include
being overweight or underweight, or her age as female fertility
declines after the age of 30.
Sometimes it can be a combination of factors, and sometimes a clear
cause is never established.
Common causes of infertility of females include:
• Ovulation problems (e.g., polycystic ovarian syndrome, PCOS, the
leading reason why women present to fertility clinics due to an
ovulatory infertility)
• Tubal blockage
• Age-related factors
• Uterine problems
• Endometriosis
• Advanced maternal age
MALE
The main cause of male infertility is low semen quality. In men who
have the necessary reproductive organs to procreate, infertility can be
caused by low sperm count due to endocrine problems, drugs,
radiation, or infection. There may be testicular malformations,
hormone imbalance, or blockage of the man's duct system. Although
many of these can be treated through surgery or hormonal
substitutions, some may be indefinite. Infertility associated with
viable, but immotile sperm.
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Behavioral Factors
It is well-known that certain personal habits and lifestyle factors
impact health, many of these same factors may limit a couple's ability
to conceive. Fortunately, however, many of these variables can be
regulated to increase not only the chances of conceiving but also one's
overall health.
• Diet and exercise
• Alcohol
• Smoking
• Drugs
• Age
COMBINED INFERTILITY
In some cases, both the man and woman may be infertile or sub-
fertile, and the couple's infertility arises from the combination of these
conditions. In other cases, the cause is suspected to be immunological
or genetic; it may be that each partner is independently fertile but the
couple cannot conceive together without assistance.
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In these cases, abnormalities are likely to be present but not detected
by current methods. Possible problems could be that the egg is not
released at the optimum time for fertilization, which it may not enter
the fallopian tube, sperm may not be able to reach the egg,
fertilization may fail to occur, transport of the zygote may be
disturbed, or implantation fails. It is increasingly recognized that egg
quality is of critical importance and women of advanced maternal age
have eggs of reduced capacity for normal and successful fertilization.
TREATMENT
Medical treatment of infertility generally involves the use of fertility
medication, medical device, surgery, or a combination of the
following. If the sperm are of good quality and the mechanics of the
woman's reproductive structures are good (patent fallopian tubes, no
adhesions or scarring), a course of ovarian stimulating medication
maybe used. The physician may also suggest using a conception cap
cervical cap, which the patient uses at home by placing the sperm
inside the cap and putting the conception device on the cervix, or
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intrauterine insemination (IUI), in which the doctor introduces sperm
into the uterus during ovulation, via a catheter. In these methods,
fertilization occurs inside the body.
If conservative medical treatments fail to achieve a full-term
pregnancy, the physician or may suggest the patient undergo in vitro
fertilization (IVF). IVF and related techniques (ICSI, ZIFT, and
GIFT) are called assisted reproductive technology (ART) techniques.
ART techniques generally start with stimulating the ovaries to
increase egg production. After stimulation, the physician surgically
extracts one or more eggs from the ovary, and unites them with sperm
in a laboratory setting, with the intent of producing one or more
embryos. Fertilization takes place outside the body, and the fertilized
egg is reinserted into the woman's reproductive tract, in a procedure
called embryo transfer.
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CONCLUSION
Infertility is a health problem of considerable socio-cultural and
economic impact. It needs to be alleviated by several measures
including health education, prevention, and early diagnosis and
providing the patient with cost effective treatment including ART.
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History and physical examination usually will help to identify the
reason behind the cause. If the patients fail the initial therapies, then
the proper referral should be made to a reproductive specialist.
It is also very important for both the individuals to take a proper care
of their reproductive health and ensure that they are leading a healthy
lifestyle so as to prevent any factors which makes it difficult
especially for the women to conceive.
WHO recognizes that the provision of high-quality services for
familyplanning, including fertility care services, as one of the core
elements of reproductive health? Recognizing the impact of infertility
on people’s quality of life and well-being thus becomes very
important.
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• www. B iOlogical science
• www. E xploring biology
• www. T ell me why
• www . E ncyclopedi a
BOOKS
NCERT XII
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