Hemochromatosis Support Group

Hemochromatosis is a hereditary disease characterized by improper processing by the body of dietary iron which causes iron to accumulate in a number of body tissues, eventually causing organ dysfunction. It is the main iron overload disorder. Hemochromatosis is notorious for having symptoms that are often initially misattributed to other diseases.

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FeralFerritin 04/14/2011

Hi everyone, well more the guys I suppose!

Has anyone been treated successfully for infertility?

I have a 2yr old boy & had a sperm test just over 3yrs ago, which was normal.

Just had another as no luck with second child (but with my wife's age [40] we're not surprised, but doc said he might as well check it, given I only found out about HH around June last) but have just found out the results of my sperm test. Which was ZERO rapidly progressive and only 20% slowly progressive. That was a surprise given my previous test.

Are the "normal" fertility docs OK? Does our HH infertility issues differ to the norm?

Would welcome any experiences, tips etc.

Thanks

YREKADC 04/14/2011

wow feral that is a good question. my understanding of the affects on our male parts from HH is an arousal problem. i think it is due to iron depositing in our testes. i don't know your age, but between your age and that of your wife....... i have had several friends that had simular issues with fertility, but it was tagged as an age thing. i didn't know about HH at the time and have no idea if they had HH.
i am sorry for you and your wife. being a parent is awesome. I guess there is adoption!? Or just keep trying . good luck and try not to get too depressed by it. depression sucks.

FeralFerritin 04/17/2011

YREKADC, Thanks for you support.

I'm happy to say I've got no problems with arousal, though many do. One thing I did notice was that after about 3mths of phlebs I was more . . . . er . . . perky shall we say! ha! ha! I'd previously thought my somewhat reduced drive was just an normal age related thing . . . . it seems not apparently.

The arousal issue must have been an issue for my uncle as at the time of his marriage (age 30, just before WWII) his mother apparently spoke to his fiancee about the possibility of not having children (she still married him!).
(Note: He was never diagnosed with HH but was still being treated [incorrectly!! They gave him iron injections at one point!] for related issues at the time of his death in the 1990's!!! We are now almost 100% certain he must have had HH. His records show high iron, he had arthritis, particularly in 1st two fingers, was unable to have kids etc. etc.)

YREKADC 04/17/2011

glad to be of some help.. i think if we were able to look back at many of our past family members, it would be found they either had hh or were carriers.. my sister is a carrier. but she has had all kinds of crap that may or may not be related to the hh.. our mom had it and never let us know..
i hope the best for you and your misses. my grand pa says practice makes perfect!?? hmmmm??

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