Assessing a couple who presents with infertility involves looking at both partners and the three main factors that are essential for conception: the release of an egg, the presence of sperm, and a healthy environment… Couples with infertility may seek care from a reproductive endocrinologist who specializes in the treatment of infertility.

Infertility can be caused by factors in either or both partners, though in many cases, a specific cause cannot be identified. Though conception and pregnancy are largely physiologic events, the nurse must not neglect the important psychosocial factors that are associated with fertility and conception, including stress and societal pressures.

fertility — person’s ability to become pregnant. chromosome — contains thousands of genes, which make up the basic unit of heredity and are composed of proteins and DNA. infertility — inability to become pregnant after 1 year of regular sexual intercourse without using any form of birth control. intrauterine insemination (IUI) — medical procedure performed by medical providers or specially trained nurses, in which specially washed sperm cells are injected through a catheter into the uterus.