Fertility & Reproductive Health

The following can make it more difficult to get pregnant:

• Smoking (by either partner)
• Being either underweight or overweight
• Excessive alcohol consumption (by either partner) — limit yourself to one drink a day or less
• Stress — especially extreme stress that disrupts your menstrual period

Certain medications can make it harder to conceive. That is usually the case when the medicine alters the balance of hormones in your body, which can affect your ovulation and how receptive the womb is to a fertilized egg.

Medications that can have this effect include:

• Steroidal medications, like some asthma treatments
• Certain psychiatric medications
• Anticonvulsants
• Thyroid medications

If you are having trouble getting pregnant, check with your provider to see if your medications could be a cause and what your options are.

After age 35, it can become more difficult to get pregnant. This is because as you age, the quantity and quality of your eggs decreases and your risk of other conditions that can affect fertility - like endometriosis - increases. If you are 35 years old or older and are having trouble conceiving after trying for six months, talk to your gynecologist.

Many cancer treatments can affect your ability to get pregnant, even if the cancer isn't in your reproductive system. In some cases, the risk is temporary. For example, chemotherapy drugs can cause ovaries to stop releasing eggs, but the effect goes away after you stop chemotherapy. In other cases, such as radiation or surgery, cancer treatment can cause longer-lasting damage or scarring to the reproductive system.

Other medical conditions, like ovarian cysts and thyroid and other hormone or pituitary conditions, can also affect fertility in women.

Whenever possible, our gynecological surgeons use minimally invasive surgical treatments for infertility that minimize pain and allow a faster recovery time.

In addition to traditional laparoscopic surgery, the state-of-the-art robotic daVinci® Surgical System allows our providers to handle complex, delicate surgeries with unmatched precision and only tiny incisions. This means an easier and faster recovery for you with less pain, scarring or risk of infection so you can quickly get back to what matters most.

Explore Minimally Invasive Gynecological Procedures

Endometriosis is a condition in which the cells lining the uterus grow in areas outside the uterus, leading to pain, bleeding and other discomfort. In some cases, endometriosis can lead to infertility if the cells spread to the fallopian tubes and block them. In other cases, endometriosis can cause uterine scarring or affect the eggs directly. Depending on where your endometriosis has spread, you may be able to have surgery to remove the problematic tissue and restore normal function.

If your fallopian tubes are blocked, there are several different procedures a surgeon may perform to remove the blockage, depending on its cause and location. The surgeon may make an incision to open the tube and remove the blockage. You could also have the blockage removed without incisions in a process using catheters inserted through the vagina.

If you've had a tubal ligation — commonly called "having your tubes tied" — a surgeon can try to reverse the process. This procedure involves removing the tied portion of the tube. The rest of the tube is then stitched together to create an unblocked pathway for eggs to travel.  If you've had a ligation but now want to get pregnant, it may be possible to reverse the operation. However, reversal isn't successful in all cases.

Scar tissue in your womb or abdominal cavity can make it difficult for eggs to fertilize or implant properly. A more severe buildup of scar tissue can also reduce the space inside the abdomen, making it difficult or impossible for a fetus to develop, causing miscarriages or complications. When infertility results from scar tissue in the womb or abdomen, a surgeon can operate to remove that scar tissue, increasing the chances of a successful pregnancy.