Paul is sitting in his home in Belfast, with his husband Neil and their beautiful three-month-old son Felix, talking about their journey to fatherhood – a journey that the Lister Fertility Clinic, part of HCA Healthcare UK, accompanied them on.
Male infertility
- 5/5 HFEA rating
- The UK’s largest private IVF unit
- More than 22,000 babies born with us
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Male infertility at HCA UK
Why choose us?
Whether you and your partner are trying to conceive or you want to plan for your future, our leading male fertility experts can help. We specialise in the diagnosis and treatment of andrology conditions (the area of medicine concerning men's health), including male fertility and erectile dysfunction.
Male infertility is a factor in around half of couples struggling to conceive. Even if fertility issues are identified in a female partner, there may also be male factors involved. For this reason, we recommend that you both have fertility tests at the same time.
Male fertility problems can be caused by a number of factors, including difficulties with sexual intercourse, low sperm production, abnormal sperm function or blockages that prevent the delivery of sperm. These are often treatable. However, it’s important to be aware that a cause can’t always be found. Either way, we can help give you the best chance of success in achieving a pregnancy.
The most common issues that affect male fertility are:
- No sperm in the semen (azoospermia)
- Low number of sperm in the semen (oligozoospermia)
- Abnormal shaped sperm (morphology)
- Problems with how the sperm move (motility)
Sperm can be affected by the following:
- Hormonal problems
- Genetic causes and chromosomal abnormalities, such as Klinefelter syndrome
- Previous surgery or injury to your testicles or reproductive organs
- Infection or inflammation of your testicles
- Immunological conditions that affect your reproductive tract
- Structural problems such as undescended testes, varicoceles (enlarged veins in your scrotum) and abnormalities with the epididymis (the tubes that store sperm)
- Medicines or cancer treatments
- Lifestyle factors, such as smoking and obesity
Male infertility can also be a result of erection and ejaculation problems, such as erectile dysfunction. Your consultant will discuss treatment options with you.
When you see one of our specialist consultants, they’ll start by taking your medical history.
They’ll ask you details about:
Our consultant will also need to carry out a physical examination, which involves checking your penis, scrotum and testicles. They may also recommend that you have tests to try and identify a cause for your infertility. You can find out more on these below.
We take a holistic approach to caring for our patients, so our male fertility specialists may also advise on any lifestyle and nutritional changes that you should make to give you and your partner the very best chance of conceiving.
22,000+
babies born with us
17
dedicated fertility consultants
35+
years with a history of success
All procedures and treatments
carried out on-site
In-house laboratories
Fully personalised care in
state-of-the-art facilities
Male fertility tests and scans at HCA UK
Expert diagnosis, fast results
To help find the cause of your infertility, your consultant may recommend that you have one or more tests and scans. All of our state-of-the-art laboratories are on-site, which means we're able to give patients faster results, often in as little as 48 hours, and a faster path to timely treatment.
We offer the following:
- Semen analysis
- Ultrasound
- Infection screening
- Hormone tests
- Genetic testing
- Sperm DNA test
Male fertility treatments at HCA UK
Expert care with excellent outcomes
If you’re having problems conceiving with your partner, we’re here to help. We’ll give you dedicated, fully personalised care from diagnosis to treatment. You’ll also have access to our on-site fertility counsellors, so you can talk through any concerns in a safe, confidential space.
We offer a number of treatments for male infertility, including:
- Fertility medicines to help with sperm production
- Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI) and sperm selection techniques
- Sperm retrieval
- Vasectomy reversal
- Intrauterine Insemination (IUI)
- In Vitro Fertilisation (IVF)
Accessing private health care
Self-pay
You don’t need health insurance to be seen quickly. If you’re looking for treatment and don’t want to wait, all of our fertility treatments can be paid for as and when you need them.
And to give you peace of mind from the start, we’ll provide you with a clear and transparent quote outlining exactly what’s included in your self-pay package.
Male infertility FAQs
We don’t have a waiting list, so our team will fit you in as soon as possible at a time and date that suits you.
We realise that undergoing any fertility testing and treatment is a personal and difficult process, and we want you to feel as comfortable as possible. That is why we let our patients choose which consultant they see. You can use our online Consultant Finder to view our fertility specialists and find an HCA UK location that suits you.
You can find the prices of our services, which includes everything from tests and scans to IVF cycles, here.
Our services are regulated by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA), which is responsible for fertility treatment and research across the UK. As well as licensing clinics and monitoring their practices, HFEA sets standards to ensure patient safety and high-quality care.
Our inspection rating for both the Lister Fertility Clinic and Lister Fertility Clinic at The Portland Hospital is 5/5. You can see the full reports for yourself here and here.
Our patients' fertility stories
How Lister Fertility Clinic helped two fathers-to-be
Clare’s fertility treatment
Clare and her husband Derek thought they might never have children, until joining the egg-sharing programme at the Lister Fertility Clinic.
Alice and Aaron's fertility treatment
After being told they’d never have children, Alice and Aaron turned to the Lister Fertility Clinic. They now have a beautiful two-year-old daughter.
“Mr Yap has been professional and kind, and we couldn’t have asked for a better consultant.”
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