Wednesday, July 8, 2009

No wonder....

In order to fall pregnant you need the following:

A healthy egg
Healthy sperm
Perfect timing
Clear tubes

Right?? Sperm breezes through tubes meets egg. They travel back to the uterus and implant. Easy peasy!!

Do you know how many basic things can go wrong besides the obvious?

The outer shell of the egg, the Zona Pellucida, usually hardens after the chosen sperm enters the egg. It is possible that the outer shell does not allow the lucky sperm to enter, or allows too many sperm to enter the egg. (Greedy egg) Both these situations result in abnormalities that lead to infertility.

OR

Once an egg is fertilized, there is an 80 percent chance of cell division. The rate of division of the resulting embryo is also of significance. Usually 48 hours after fertilization, the embryo is between two to four cells. At 72 hours, they are usually between six to eight cells. After five days of growth, they are usually over 120 cells with a fluid cavity in the middle - known as the Blastocyst. If a larger than expected percentage of embryos divide slowly or stop dividing at any stage, this can result in infertility.

OR

There can also be problems with normal implantation of the embryo once it reaches the uterus lining. This can be due to the presence or absence of certain important factors needed for implantation at the level of the uterus or the embryo. The outer shell of the embryo can be too hard or thick and not allow hatching of the embryo out of its shell (Zona Pellucida). This can result in a lower chance of implantation. Hence no pregnancy.

Goodness me, no wonder I’m not pregnant yet. There are just too many factors that can go wrong. Dumb luck I guess. (And the fact that we don’t have the best sperm to begin with.)


0 comments: