Experience with a Comprehensive University Hospital-based Infertility Program in Nigeria

Objective: To assess outcome at an infertility management center in Nigeria.

Methods: Diagnoses were made for 1948 consecutive couples following the World Health Organization guideline on the investigation of infertile couples, treatment was provided, and the couples were followed up over a 10-year period.

Results: The infertility was primary in 14.3% and secondary in 85.7% of cases. Treatment failed in 59.9% and succeeded in 40.1% of cases, resulting in pregnancy for 13.5% of the couples with female infertility factors alone, 6.5% of the couples with male infertility factors alone, and 3.6% of those with both male and female factors. The pregnancy rate was 16.6% for couples with idiopathic infertility.

Conclusion: Pregnancy outcome was relatively poor because conventional treatments did not cure the most prevalent causes of infertility, and assisted reproductive technology is therefore advocated.