Infertility Terms & Definitions
Ablation: 1. separation or detachment; extirpation; eradication. 2. removal or destruction of a part, especially by cutting. Ablation of endometriomas.
Abortion: Spontaneous : A pregnancy loss during the first twenty weeks of gestation. Habitual: When a woman has had three or more miscarriages. Incomplete: An abortion after which some tissue remains inside the uterus. A D&C must be performed to remove the tissue and prevent complications. Missed: The fetus dies in the uterus but there is no bleeding or cramping. A D&C will be needed to remove the fetal remains and prevent complications. Therapeutic: A procedure used to terminate a pregnancy before the fetus can survive on its own. Threatened: Spotting or bleeding that occurs early in the pregnancy. May progress to spontaneous abortion.
ACA: See Anticardiolipin Antibodies.
Acrosome: The part of the spermatozoon that releases egg-penetrating enzymes.
Acrosome membrane: This is a membrane that provides a covering over the head of the sperm. It contains enzymes that penetrate the egg when released.
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 - 35 seconds). This test is often used when patients are on medications that thin blood, such as Heparin.
Adenomyosis: Similar to endometriosis in that the cells of the uterine lining invade the muscle of the uterine wall. It often causes pain and, possibly, abnormal bleeding.
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 resulting from infections, inflammation, or prior surgery occurring in the abdominal cavity, fallopian tubes, or inside the uterus. Adhesions can connect organs in the abdominal cavity and interfere with transport of the egg and implantation of the embryo in the uterus.
Adnexa: The region of the pelvis that includes the ovary, fallopian tube and surrounding broad ligament. plural: adnexae.
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.
Agglutination: Clumping together. Sperm may clump together due to infection, inflammation or antibodies making the sperm unable to swim easily.
Agonist: A chemical substance capable of providing similar reactions to natural functions of a hormone in the body.
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).
AIDS: Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome. A disease of the human immune system that is caused by infection with HIV. It is commonly transmitted in blood and bodily secretions (like semen). It is a life-threatening disease.
AIH: Artificial Insemination Homologous/Husband. See Artificial Insemination, Intrauterine Insemination (IUI).
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.
Ampullary: The widest and outer part of the fallopian tube.
ANA: See Anti-nuclear Antibodies.
Androgens: Male sex hormones such as testosterone and DHEAS, produced by the testes in the male and the ovaries and adrenal glands in the female.
Andrologist: A physician-scientist who performs laboratory evaluations of male fertility. May hold a Ph.D. degree instead of an M.D. Usually affiliated with a fertility treatment center working on in vitro fertilization.
Aneuploidy: Condition in which an embryo has an abnormal number of chromosomes.
Anovulation: The absence of ovulation.
Anteverted Uterus: Uterus that tips forward toward that bladder.
Antibody: A chemical created naturally by the body's immune system which helps to fight off bacteria and foreign substances. 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): An antibody directed against cardiolipin. These are one of the antiphospholipid group of antibodies. They are the most widely accepted and tested for immune factor. Approximately 80% of patients who have an antiphospholipid antibody problem will test positive for anticardiolipin antibodies, but the remaining 20% will test positive for one of the other six antiphospholipid antibodies. See Antiphospholipid Antibodies.
Antigen: A protein or carbohydrate substance (as a toxin or enzyme) capable of stimulating an immune response causing antibodies to form.
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 hosphocholine.
Antisperm Antibodies(ASA): Antibodies that create a hostile environment in the cervical mucus by attaching themselves to sperm and inhibiting movement and their ability to fertilize. Either the man or the woman may produce sperm antibodies.
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, APA, ASA.
APA: See Antiphospholipid Antibodies.
APTT: See Activated Partial Thromboplastin Time.
ART: See Assisted Reproduction Technology.
Artificial Insemination (AI): A procedure which includes placing sperm into the vagina, cervix, uterus or fallopian tubes through artificial means instead of by coitus -- usually injected through a catheter or cannula after being washed. This procedure is used for both donor (AID) and husband's (AIH) sperm. This technique is used to overcome sexual performance problems, to circumvent sperm-mucus interaction problems, to maximize the potential for poor semen, and for using donor sperm. See Intrauterine Insemination.
Artificial Spermatocoele: An artificial, surgically created pouch used to collect sperm from men with irreversible tubal blockage.
ASA: See Antisperm Antibodies.
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: Extracting fluid through suctioning, such as suctioning the fluid from a follicle to retrieve an egg during procedures such as IVF, or cyst aspiration from an ovary.
Assisted Hatching (AH, AZH): A micromanipulation procedure which chemically dissolves a small opening in the the zona pellucida of the embryo to assist in implantation to the uterine lining.
Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART): Several procedures employed to bring about conception without sexual intercourse, including IUI, IVF, GIFT and ZIFT.
Asthenospermia: Poor motility in sperm.
Asthenozoospermia: Low sperm motility.
Asymptomatic: Having no symptoms.
Autoimmune: An immune reaction against one's own tissue.
Autoimmune Dysfunction: A disease where the body's immune system destroys its own tissue.
AVA, AOA: See Antiovarian antibodies.
Azoospermia: Absence of sperm in ejaculate. Obstructive Azoospermia: The result of obstruction in either the upper or lower male reproductive tract (epididymis, vas deferens, seminal vesicles or ejaculatory ducts). Sperm production may be normal (which may be verified through testicular biopsy), but the obstruction is preventing the sperm from being ejaculated. Some causes of obstructive azoospermia are vasectomy, congenital absence of vas deferens, scarring from past infections, and hernia operations. Non-obstructive Azoospermia: Severely impaired or non-existent sperm production. Some sperm may be found and extracted directly from the testicles.
