A-Z Infertility Terms
A-Z Infertility Terms offer everything you will need to know about Infertility, from A-Z. The journey ahead starts and ends with the need for information. A-Z Infertility Terms is your resource to understanding the many complexities having to do with infertility.
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Abdomen - The belly , that part of the body that contains all of the structures between the chest and the pelvis . The abdomen is separated anatomically from the chest by the diaphragm , the powerful muscle spanning the body cavity below the lungs .
Abdominal - Relating to the abdomen, the belly , that part of the body that contains all of the structures between the chest and the pelvis . The abdomen is separated anatomically from the chest by the diaphragm , the powerful muscle spanning the body cavity below the lungs .
Ablation - Separation or detachment; extirpation; eradication. 2. removal or destruction of a part, expecially by cutting. Ablation of endometriomas.
Abortion - Spontaneous
Acanthosis nigricans - A velvety skin discoloration associated with insulin resistance.
Acrosome - The enzymes in a sperm's head that allows it to make a hole in the coating around an egg, penetrate and fertilize the egg.
Acrosome reaction - A test to assess the biochemical changes on the head of the sperm that may predict the ability of the sperm to fertilize the egg.
ACTH - See Adrenal Corticotropic Hormone.
Activated Partial Thromboplastin Time (APTT) - A coagulation test performed by adding a "partial thromboplastin" reagent (contact activating substance such as silica, phospholipid, and calcium) to citrated plasma, and measuring the time to clot (normal 25
Adenomyosis - The penetration and growth of endometrial tissue from the uterine lining into the myometrium (uterine muscle) is called adenomyosis or internal endometriosis.
Adenosis - 1.) Any disease of the glands. 2.) the abnormal development or formation of gland tissue. 3.) the presence in the vagina of multiple ectopic areas of glandular (columnar) epithelium.
Adhesion - Scar tissue occurring in the abdominal cavity, fallopian tubes, or inside the uterus. Adhesions can interfere with transport of the egg and implantation of the embryo in the uterus.
Adhesions - Bands of fibrous tissue that can bind reproductive organs, thereby reducing a woman's fertility.
Adnexa - the region of the pelvis that includes the ovary, fallopian tube and surrounding broad ligament.
Adoption - Legal process that creates a parent
Adrenal Androgens - Male hormones produced by the adrenal gland which, when found in excess, may lead to fertility problems in both men and women. Excess androgens in the woman may lead to the formation of male secondary sex characteristics and the suppression of LH and FSH production by the pituitary gland. Elevated levels of androgens may be found in women with polycystic ovaries, or with a tumor in the pituitary gland, adrenal gland, or ovary. May also be associated with excess prolactin levels.
Adrenal Corticotropic Hormone (ACTH) - A hormone produced by the pituitary gland to stimulate the adrenal glands. Excessive levels may lead to fertility problems.
Advanced Medical Directive - Written document that specifies a person's wishes concerning his or her medical care in the event that person becomes incapacitated or dies and is unable to directly provide those instructions. An advanced medical directive can be used to determine the future use of frozen tissue like sperm, eggs, embryos and ovarian tissue.
Adverse event - In pharmacology, any unexpected or dangerous reaction to a drug.
Agglutination - Clumping together. Sperm may clump together due to infection, inflammation or antibodies.
AH, AZH - See Assisted Hatching.
AI - See Artificial Insemination, Donor Insemination, Intrauterine Insemination (IUI).
AID - Artificial Insemination Donor. See Artificial Insemination, Donor Insemination, Intrauterine Insemination (IUI).
Alkylating agents - Category of chemotherapy medications that usually have extreme impact on the reproductive system.
Alloimmune Factors - Natural killer cells, leukocyte antigen cross match. Alloimmune factors can lead to pregnancy loss in two different ways. First, the body fails to recognize a pregnancy, and second, there is an abnormal immunological response to the pregnancy. A patient may be tested for leukocyte antibodies, natural killer cells, and embryo toxic factor. Possible treatments are intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIg) or paternal white blood cell immunization.
Amenorrhea - The absence of menstruation. Primary Amenorrhea afflicts a woman who has never menstruated. Secondary Amenorrhea afflicts a woman who has menstruated at one time, but who has not had a period for six months or more.
Amniocentesis - A test where amniotic fluid is aspirated to test the fetus for genetic abnormalities.
ANA - See Anti
Anatomy - The study of form. Gross anatomy involves structures that can be seen with the naked eye, as opposed to microscopic anatomy (or histology) which involves structures seen under the microscope. Traditionally, both gross and microscopic anatomy have been studied in the first year of medical school in the U.S. The most celebrated textbook of anatomy in the English
Androgens - Male sex hormones such as testosterone and DHEAS.
Andrologist - A doctor who specializes in male infertility and sexual disorders, for example sperm and hormone production. May also be a scientist who analyzes semen.
Aneuploidy - Condition of having an abnormal number of chromosomes.
Anovulation - Failure to release an egg on a regular basis, resulting in irregular or absent periods.
Anteverted Uterus - Uterus that tips forward toward that bladder.
Antibodies - Chemicals made by the body to fight or attack foreign substances entering the body. Normally they prevent infection; however, when they attack the sperm or fetus, they cause infertility. Sperm antibodies may be made by either the man or the woman.
Anticardiolipin Antibodies (ACA) - Specific antibodies that are formed against various components of the cells of the body; their presence is often associated with pregnancy loss.
Antigen - Any substance capable of causing an immune response.
Antinuclear Antibodies (ANA) - Antinuclear antibodies react against normal components of the cell nucleus. The may be present in a number of immunologic diseases such as systemic lupus erythematosus, rheumatoid arthritis, and certain collagen diseases, and in about 1% of normal individuals. If you have systemic lupus erythematosus, it can be transmitted through the placenta to the baby, resulting in heart problems.
Antiovarian Antibodies (AOA, AVA) - Antibodies against ovarian targets. Such antibodies would bind to important functional sites in the ovary and granulosa cells and impair the normal response.
Antiphospholipid Antibodies (APA) - Antibodies which attack phospholipids. The presence of Antiphospholipid antibodies may indicate there is an underlying process that results in recurrent pregnancy loss. Phospholipids work to hold dividing cells together, and are necessary for growth of the placenta into the wall of the uterus. They also filter nourishment from the mother's blood to the baby, and filter the baby's waste back through the placenta. There are 7 antiphospholipid antibodies: anticardiolipin (ACA), phosphoethanolamine, phosphoinositol, phosphatidic acid, phosphoglycerol, phosphoserine, and phosphocholine. See article
Antisperm Antibodies (ASA) - Antibodies are produced by the immune system to fight off foreign substances,like bacteria. Antisperm antibodies attach themselves to sperm and inhibit movement and their ability to fertilize. Either the man or the woman may produce sperm antibodies.
Antithrombin III - A protein involved in coagulation cascade. A deficiency in antithrombin II is associated with an increased risk of blood clotting and pregnancy loss.
Antithyroid Antibodies (ATA) - Antibodies that interfere with thyroid functions, and thus with normal metabolism. They are also indicators for a predisposition of the patient to auto immunity which may involve additional autoimmune problems that interfere with the reproductive process such as ACA and ASA.
Antral follicle count - The number of resting follicles detected in an ultrasound early in a woman's cycle.
APA - See Antiphospholipid Antibodies.
APTT - See Activated Partial Thromboplastin Time.
Aromatase inhibitors - Medications that inhibit the conversion of androgens to estrogens by the enzyme aromatase, thus depriving the tumor of estrogenic signals
Artificial Insemination (AI) - A group of fertility procedures involving the introduction of sperm into the female reproductive tract without intercourse. Semen is collected and processed in a lab and then inserted directly into the woman's cervix or uterus to try to achieve pregnancy. Also called intracervical (ICI) or intrauterine insemination (IUI)
Artificial Spermatocoele - An artificial, surgically created pouch used to collect sperm from men with irreversible tubal blockage.
ASA - See Antisperm Antibodies.
Asexual Reproduction -
Asherman's Syndrome - A condition where the uterine walls adhere to one another. Usually caused by uterine inflammation.
Aspermia - The absence of sperm and semen.
Aspiration - Suctioning of fluid. For example, suctioning the fluid from a follicle to retrieve an egg.
Assisted Hatching (AH, AZH) - Thinning out the zona pellucida prior to transferring the embryo into the uterus.
Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) - Several procedures employed to bring about conception without sexual intercourse, including IUI, IVF, GIFT and ZIFT.
Asthenozoospermia - Low sperm motility.
Asymptomatic - Having no symptoms.
Autoimmune Reaction - An immune reaction against one's own tissue.
Autosomal dominant diseases - Genetic diseases carried on a chromosome other than the X or Y chromosomes (sex chromosomes), in which a single abnormal copy of the gene leads to the presence of the disease.
Autosomal recessive diseases - Genetic diseases carried on a chromosome other than the X or the Y chromosomes, in which two abnormal copies of the gene are necessary for the disease to be present.
AVA, AOA - See Antiovarian antibodies.
Azoospermia - The absence of sperm in the semen analysis.