How successful are infertility treatments?
When talking of success rates for any type of infertility treatment, one should bear in mind that the average chance to conceive for a normally fertile couple having regular unprotected intercourse is around 25% during each menstrual cycle. It is estimated that 10% of normally fertile couples fail to conceive within their first year of attempt and 5% after two years. Comparable to normal fertility rates, effective treatments can be expected to have, on average, up to a 25% success rate per cycle of treatment, and may therefore need to be repeated several times before a pregnancy is achieved. Simple ovulation induction to compensate for hormonal imbalances has a very high success rate; more than 80% of women suffering from such disorders are likely to conceive after several cycles of treatment with drugs such as clomiphene citrate or gonadotrophins.
Each couple’s condition and response to infertility treatment is unique. The answer is difficult to calculate, because it depends on several factors: the woman’s body, the man’s body, the clinic’s success rate, and luck. Physiological factors that affect success include the age of the woman, uterine abnormalities, and whether both partners have infertility factors.
