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One cause of infertility among women might be a high TSH level
BEACON TRANSCRIPT – Sometimes, women can struggle with infertility when there is no clear medical explanation for it. However, researchers discovered that an apparently healthy thyroid might be to blame. High TSH levels which are still situated within the normal range show the gland is healthy, but slightly underactive, which might be a cause for infertility.
Women are often infertile for no apparent medical reason
Researchers developed a study where they analyzed a possible cause of unexplained infertility. If the women’s partner didn’t have a low sperm count which prevented the couple from conceiving, then they were more likely to have elevated levels of thyroid-stimulating hormones. This usually happens when the hormone levels are situated near the high end of the normal range.
Around 10 percent of all American women aged between 15 and 44 have difficulties in getting pregnant even after attempts which last for months. Sometimes, there is no apparent medical explanation for this infertility. Ten to 30 percent of the infertile couples experience this issue, which usually baffles doctors.
This new research offers a new possibility to explain this puzzling infertility. However, the study was observational, as scientists noticed a correlation between high TSH and unexplained inability to conceive. This means that they couldn’t find out if treating the thyroid condition would improve the women’s chances to have a baby.
Normal-high TSH levels might be a cause of this unexplained infertility
The study used participants between 18 and 39 who received an infertility diagnosis. However, the women who were included had to have a regular menstrual cycle, and they needed to have undergone a proper evaluation of their fertility. From all these women, 187 were infertile for no apparent medical reason, while 52 of them had low sperm count in their partners.
Researchers studied the TSH levels of all the participants, and those with no male factor involved had higher thyroid hormone levels. Now, they are trying to find out if decreasing these levels would help the women get pregnant. The study was published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.
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