TIMED INTERCOURSE
Timed intercourse is a simple treatment option for infertility. It involves monitoring your ovarian cycle via ultrasound and hormone testing and then having sexual intercourse around the time you are predicted to be most fertile. Your fertile period is known as your fertile window. Your fertile window is 2-3 days around a positive ovulation kit result or when there is a rise in your basal body temperature (BBT).
The cause of infertility may be different for everyone. For a couple in their mid 20’s and with perfect health, the chance of conception is only 20-25% per menstrual cycle. Even if everyone around you seems to become pregnant very easily, understand that becoming pregnant is not as easy as it may seem. However, while some cases require more assistance to achieve a healthy pregnancy, many only require little fertility guidance. At New Hope Fertility Center, our staff will closely check your ovarian cycle for the optimal time for intercourse. Sometimes, becoming pregnant simply comes down to timing.
The cervical fluid inside a woman is rich with nutrients that help sperm survive for up to 5 days. This means that once the semen is deposited in the vagina after sexual intercourse, sperm can make its way inside the uterus and meet the egg for fertilization within 5 days of sexual activity. Our fertility monitoring helps identify the optimal window for your naturally occurring fertility. Because the sperm survives so long, many Timed Intercourse protocols will recommend intercourse every other day.
A variation of Timed Intercourse is Medicated Timed Intercourse. In this case our physicians will prescribe fertility medication to assist in stimulating the ovaries to produce more eggs (oocytes) than the typical one. Your chances of conception should rise with each extra egg that is produced. However, there is a risk of multiple pregnancies, so you should discuss this option carefully with your fertility doctor at your initial consultation. Typical medications are oral pills like Clomid or Letrozole. Sometimes an injectable ovulation-trigger medication (lupron or HCG-Human Chorionic Gonadotropin), may be recommended to help release the egg from the follicle and into the fallopian tube.
Timed Intercourse can be used in conjunction with Intrauterine Insemination (IUI). It may be recommended for fertility patients whose sperm has difficulty reaching the egg. At New Hope, many fertility protocols begin with Timed Intercourse and IUI to give each patient the best and lowest cost approach to becoming pregnant. If T.I. or IUI doesn’t work, you will be recommended to try IVF.
Timed Intercourse is best for treating unexplained infertility or ovulation disorders where the ovulation doesn’t occur normally or regularly. Primarily patients who are recommended for this will have a normal semen analysis, with proper motility, count, and morphology. This would indicate that male factor infertility is not a consideration. Also, the fallopian tube in the female partner must be present and patent(open) to allow the egg and sperm to pass through.
Please book an appointment to learn more about our fertility treatment options that may work for you.