You’ve probably experienced an ache or two at some point in your life. Toothache. Backache. Shoulder pain. Ankle sprain. Pain is part of the human predicament. Like pimples, aches and pains come and go. But what happens when suddenly something pops up down there?
Category: Fertility
The “One and Done” Prescription for Male Fertility and Contraception
The Case of the Month is an actual patient of The Turek Clinic They sat down in front of me, both a little giddy about the idea of having another child. “I have boys and she has one too. We’d like to have one more, hopefully a girl,” he said. She nodded in agreement. They were...Continue reading
What’s Best for Your Boys, Boxers or Briefs?
When you hear two different stories, which do you believe? Well that depends. Typically, we use 4 kinds of information to help us to decide what to think: intuition (gut feeling), source authority, logic and evidence. Now the story: Boxers are better than briefs for your fertility. Believe it? Intuition and logic suggest that the...Continue reading
Birth Defects, Fertility and Fatherhood
Ever wonder about the future fertility of children born with birth defects? As a urologist, I’ve treated hundreds of boys with two common birth defects: undescended testicles and hypospadias. Throughout my career, it’s been hard to address the question of a boy’s future fertility with these conditions. Until now. Missing in Action Birth defects occur in 3% of U.S. newborns....Continue reading
Should You Get a Flu Shot If You’re Trying to Conceive?
It’s flu season. And you’re trying to conceive or maybe you’re pregnant. Should you get a flu shot? For those of you who never get the flu, here is the modern definition: A terrible sickness where you feel like you shouldn’t be able to walk, but somehow you can. For about a week, everything is...Continue reading
We Are Fully the Men Our Grandfathers Were
Upon reading Nellie Bowles great piece “The Dawning of Sperm Awareness” in the New York Times about the conundrum of our dropping sperm counts, I asked myself: “Am I coming across as a disruptor by not being particularly worried that we are headed toward extinction?” I thought it a good opportunity to unpack the beef behind this belief. Sperm...Continue reading
How Sperm Mapping Can Save Japan
There I was, lecturing at the leading Japanese male fertility society at their annual meeting in Kobe, Japan and it hit me: Japan has a serious infertility problem. And they really need Sperm Mapping. Children of Men Here’s the drone view. Japan has one of the lowest birth rates in the developed world (1.46, 2.1 is self...Continue reading
How Does Hollywood Handle Infertility?
You’re pretty familiar how movies deal with many of life’s biggest moments, right? Love, sex, marriage, kids, losing your job, becoming a princess or prince, winning in sports, battles, success and failure. But how do they handle infertility? I was asked this question by Insider magazine and really had to think about it. Taboo Topic The first thing that...Continue reading
What Does the Semen Analysis Really Mean?
Ever hear of the Buddhist parable of blind men describing an elephant? The man facing the elephant describes it as thick like a snake. The man who grabs its large floppy ear suggests that the creature is fan-shaped. The man who holds its leg insists that elephants are tree trunks and the one on its...Continue reading
Let’s Let Men Lead the Infertility Dance
They were young. They were in love. They came in holding hands. And they were concerned. “I’ve been timing things for well over a year and absolutely nothing has happened,” she said leading the conversation. “My cycles are like clockwork and we haven’t missed a month,” she continued. “I’m wondering whether it’s my man here.”...Continue reading