Intrauterine insemination, or IUI, is a less invasive way to assist conception and can be an effective treatment plan for younger couples with unexplained infertility.
IUI for unexplained infertility
Justin is 35 and Michelle is 33, and they have been trying to conceive for two years. Michelle initially had a higher BMI of 29, but she lost 8 kilos over the last 12 months.
Justin also quit smoking to improve his overall health and their chances of conceiving. They still had no success, so on the recommendation of friends decided to contact Melbourne IVF.
At their first appointment with the Melbourne IVF fertility specialist, he ordered a blood test to check if Michelle’s cycles - which were longer as she was still slightly overweight - were ovulatory. He also requested a semen analysis test for Justin, to check for sperm antibodies and morphology (shape).
These tests confirmed that Michelle was ovulating, her ovarian reserves were potentially fertile and there were no indications of other risks such as PCOS or endometriosis. Justin’s semen sample was normal. With no other causes identified, they were diagnosed with unexplained infertility.
Fertility treatment considerations
Unexplained infertility is a fairly common diagnosis, accounting for up to 35% of all infertility problems. With young couples such as Justin and Michelle, IUI (intrauterine insemination) is a less invasive way to assist conception, and a good starting point.
In Justin and Michelle’s situation, they were told they had a 10-12% chance of falling pregnant within the first two months with IUI. Their specialist recommended trying up to two IUI cycles before considering changing cycles to IVF where their chance of success would rise to 40% per month.
IUI is a simple and more natural procedure that involves placing Justin’s sperm in Michelle’s cervical canal when she was ovulating – about as uncomfortable as a pap smear.
They decided to start with IUI and see what happened. After the second cycle of IUI, Michelle had a positive pregnancy test and they now have a healthy baby boy.
Typical costs for IUI
As Justin and Michelle are Medicare eligible, an IUI treatment typically costs $1640.00, depending on the pre-treatment appointments, tests, medicine and the treatment itself. As they have already reached the Medicare Safety Net, Medicare provided a rebate of up to $658.00.
Your costs will vary, depending on your treatment plan, your Medicare safety net and your health insurance fund. If you’d like to find out more, talk with our Public Liaison Co-ordinator by calling 1800 111 483.
