Xtra
Consultant hopes for one fertility centre per state to
cater for the low income group
are privately owned and operated. This
means that fertility treatments nowadays
are viewed as an expensive endeavour, given
that treatment in public fertility centres are
available yet a bit scarce.
Sevellaraja stressed the need for more
centres to be operated as not all of the states
in the country possess a public IVF centre,
and not everyone can afford treatment at
private fertility centres.
He hopes that in the coming years, the
government will be able to provide each
state with one fertility centre especially for
patients with low income level.
RISING EXPENSES MAY DETER
With over 23 years of experience in the field,
he expects costs of infertility treatments to
further rise.
“Infertility treatment has always been
costly due to the expanses of laboratory
work and culture medium that is needed
for the treatments. It will be hard to reduce
the costs for fertility treatment as it takes a
village to set up a centre and the laboratory
to run the treatments successfully.”
I
NFERTILITY can be caused by many
things – with various contributing
factors. Yet not all cases of infertility have
to be treated with In Vitro Fertilisation
(IVF) and not all are the women’s fault.
According to Melaka Mahkota Medical
Centre Reproductive Medicine/Obstetrician
and Gynaecologist consultant Dr Sevellaraja
Supermaniam, low sperm count accounts to
40 per cent of infertility cases. This denotes
that men can also be the cause as to why
couples fail to conceive.
Although it seems that besides having low
sperm count in men, and having less than
fertile eggs in women, infertility may also
be caused by a medical condition.
“Another factor that causes infertility is
endometriosis. Known as an often painful
disorder, the tissue covers the inside of
the uterus, ovaries, fallopian tubes and the
tissue lining the pelvis - leading to fertility
problems”, explained Dr Sevellaraja.
“For pregnancy to take place, eggs have to
be released from an ovary and travel through
the fallopian tube. However, when a woman
suffers from endometriosis, the tubes are
effectively blocked and are keeping the eggs
and the sperm apart.”
OPEN FOR
BUSINESS:
Melaka Fertility
founded by
Dr Sevellaraja
Supermaniam.
Dr Sevellaraja
Supermaniam.
“Besides that, a condition involving
growth to line the uterine walls – called
uterine fibroids – may also have the same
effect. The nature of the condition can get in
the way of conceiving or at times even result
in miscarriage. Moreover, ovulatory prob-
lems where women are unable to produce
healthy eggs are also on the rise contributing
to infertility issues”, he said.
THE NEED FOR MORE FERTILITY
CENTRES IN THE COUNTRY
There has been an upsurge of fertility
centres in the country, though a lot of it
INCREASING SUCCESS
RATES OVER THE YEARS
Success rates of fertility treatment in
Malacca has seen a huge rise from 30 per
cent to a whopping 50 per cent in present
day. This is made possible from the produc-
tion of better medication and improvement
of handling techniques of embryos in the
laboratory.
However, there is an issue involving
implanting the embryos onto the uterus
that may deter the increase of success rates
in years to come.
“There are instances where implanting
the embryo in the uterus might not prove to
be as successful due to various uncontrolla-
ble factors”, said Dr Sevellaraja.
IS AWARENESS STILL AN ISSUE?
“Awareness was a problem 20 years ago,
but it is not now in my opinion. The rising
issue nowadays however, is the time couples
wait before approaching fertility centres to
resolve their problems.”
He urges couples to head to the near-
est fertility centre if they fail to achieve
pregnancy within two years of trying, as
age factors plays a crucial role in further
complicating fertility issues.
21
Shortage of Public
IVF Centres
IN OPERATION: The doctor and his team performing a gynaecological surgery.