Overview
Clomid may help male fertility in a few ways. It can help increase sperm count levels and correct hormonal imbalances. It can also help you avoid IVF or surgical treatment. In other cases, it may help boost your odds of success after surgery or during IVF. If you’re wondering if Clomid can help you, take some time to explore its success rate and potential side effects. This way you can make an educated and empowered decision and have a substantial conversation with your doctor. Your doctor may prescribe Clomid in the following situations.
Low Testosterone Levels
While men being treated for low testosterone usually experience infertility, your doctor may especially consider prescribing Clomid if the low levels are due to hypogonadotropic hypogonadism. Even if you’re not actively trying to have a baby, Clomid may help with symptoms of hypogonadism, including:
Decrease in body hair growthDecrease in muscle massErectile dysfunctionFatigueHot flashesLow libidoTrouble with concentration
Idiopathic Oligoasthenozoospermia
Idiopathic means of unknown cause. Oligoasthenozoospermia means low sperm count and poor sperm motility. If a semen analysis finds that you have low sperm count and poor motility, but your doctor can’t explain why you’re having this problem, he may diagnose you with idiopathic oligoasthenozoospermia. Clomid is one possible treatment option.
Nonobstructive Azoospermia
Azoospermia means there is no sperm found in the semen. Non-obstructive means there’s no physical blockage preventing sperm from reaching the ejaculate. With azoospermia, Clomid may be prescribed to help create and boost sperm count. Even if that is not successful, Clomid may increase the odds of a successful sperm extraction or testes biopsy (this is where immature sperm cells are retrieved via needle directly from the testes, and then matured in a lab environment).
Varicocele
One of the most common causes of male infertility is varicoceles. A varicocele is a varicose vein in the scrotum or testes. It’s questionable whether surgery or Clomid is the best treatment. Surgery seems to boost overall semen health more so than Clomid, but which treatment is more likely to increase your odds for conception is unclear.
Dosage and Treatment
Clomid treatment for men is not like female infertility treatment. Women take Clomid for about five days on specific days of the month. If it works, Clomid improves the woman’s fertility that very month. Male treatment doesn’t work like that. With men, Clomid is usually taken over a number of days for at least three months. It takes more time to see results, and you shouldn’t expect quick fertility improvement. Treatment usually takes at least a month before any changes in semen can be seen, and a full three months before pregnancy rates may show improvement. You should always follow your doctor’s instructions while taking Clomid. A few common protocols used include:
Dosage of 25mg taken daily for 25 days, followed by a five-day rest period. This cycle is repeated for three months.Dosage of 25mg taken for five days, followed by five days off, for three months.High dosage of 100mg taken for 10 days, once every month, for three months.
Your doctor may prescribe an antioxidant to take with Clomid. Antioxidants like vitamin E have been shown to further improve treatment success. Your doctor may also order occasional blood work to check your testosterone levels. He may then adjust your treatment based on the results.
Side Effects
Most studies on Clomid and men found no serious adverse effects. This doesn’t mean serious adverse effects can’t happen, only that if they do, it’s rare.
More Serious Side Effects
Blurred vision is a possible serious side effect, as it can worsen and potentially cause permanent vision damage if left untreated. If you experience blurred vision or vision disturbances while taking Clomid, contact your doctor as soon as possible.
Uncomfortable Side Effects
There isn’t much information available on non-serious but still uncomfortable side effects of Clomid in men. This is because initial research was only conducted among female patients. Generally, most of the side effects seen in women are caused by estrogen changes. Because estrogen levels in men are lower than in women, men are less likely to experience some of the more uncomfortable side effects that women may experience. One study did find that 5% of male patients experienced nipple tenderness. For some men, the tenderness went away spontaneously during treatment. For others, it continued until treatment was discontinued.
Increased Risk of Twins?
No, Clomid does not increase the risk of twins when taken for male infertility. When women take Clomid, it boosts ovulation. This may lead to having two eggs released instead of just one. If two eggs are ovulated and both become fertilized, a woman may become pregnant with twins.
Success Rates for Male Infertility
Success can be defined in two different ways:
Improvement in sperm health and testosterone levelsIncreased pregnancy rates
The average pregnancy rate is around 13% to 15%. In studies including only couples facing male infertility, pregnancy rates after Clomid treatment vary. One meta-analysis looked at the results of several studies on Clomid and male infertility, specifically, men experiencing idiopathic low sperm count and/or poor sperm motility. It found that treatment with Clomid, compared to no treatment, increased sperm concentration by about 5% and improved motility by about 4%. In one study of men with azoospermia (no sperm at all in the semen), Clomid helped 64.3% of the men to produce sperm, with semen analysis results showing between 1 and 16 million sperm per milliliter. For the men who did not produce sperm after Clomid treatment, all patients in this study had enough sperm to be retrieved using testicular sperm extraction. The extracted sperm could then be used for ICSI-IVF treatment.
A Word From Verywell
In some cases, your doctor will prescribe Clomid for reasons other than infertility. Whether or not this is the case, make sure to understand the potential side effects and work hand-in-hand with your doctor to follow the prescribed treatment protocol. This way you’ll see the safest and likely the best results. In the case that you’re taking Clomid to improve fertility, it may provide you and your partner some hope. Remember that your personal situation will depend on your fertility and your partner’s fertility, so don’t feel discouraged if Clomid doesn’t work. Once again, understand the research and work hand-in-hand with your doctor to explore your options.
