n. the operation performed to restore free passage through a blocked Fallopian tube. The blocked portion of the tube is removed surgically and the continuity is then restored. It is performed in women who have been sterilized previously by tubal occlusion (see sterilization) and in others whose Fallopian tubes have become blocked as a result of pelvic infection.
n. inability in a woman to conceive or in a man to induce conception after regular unprotected sexual intercourse for two years. Female infertility may be due to failure to ovulate, to obstruction of the *Fallopian tubes, or to disease of the lining of the uterus (endometrium). Possible treatments (depending on the cause) include administration of drugs (such as *clomifene or *gonadorelin analogues), surgery (see salpingography; salpingostomy; salpingolysis) to restore patency of the Fallopian tubes, *gamete intrafallopian transfer (GIFT), and *in vitro fertilization. Causes of male infertility include decreased numbers or motility of spermatozoa (see oligospermia) and total absence of sperm (see azoospermia). See also andrology; sterility.... infertility
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