How is infertility diagnosed?

You and your partner will have thorough exams. You will be asked about: your sexual history, including previous pregnancy, miscarriage, or abortion, your medical and family history, your diet and exercise habits, stress, your use of drugs, alcohol and tobacco, your sexual intercourse practices, such as how often you have sex and whether you use lubricants. You may need to find out if you are ovulating each month. Your healthcare provider can tell you how to take and chart your body temperature each morning. Your temperature will rise after ovulation. You can buy kits at the drugstore that can help predict ovulation. Blood test and an ultrasound of the ovaries can also be used to see if you are ovulating. Other tests that may be done are: urine and blood test to check for infections and a hormone imbalance, test of samples of cervical mucus and tissue from the lining of your uterus, tests of your partner’s semen to check the number and quality of sperm in the semen. You may have the following procedures to check for a blockage in your tubes or uterus, scar tissue, or endometriosis: hysteroscopy, laparoscopy, hysterosalpingogram.