|
|
However, like all medicines, clomiphene citrate (sometimes casually referred to by patients as "fertility pills") has its potential drawbacks. Minimally, its use can cause the immediate result of poor cervical mucus, creating more difficulty for sperm to travel to their intended destination. There is some evidence that, for some patients, the use of this low-level fertility drug may disrupt the woman's natural menstrual/ovulation cycle, defeating the drug's purpose.
At the other end of the risk spectrum, ovarian hyperstimulation is possible, while not probable. Some individuals may be particularly sensitive to the effects of ovulation induction by drugs, resulting in over-production of hormones and egg follicles which in turn may lead to the loss of an ovary, or in a worst case scenario, the woman's life.
In addition, it is possible (albeit not proven) that overuse of clomiphene citrate may lead to increased risk of ovarian cancer, a particularly insidious and deadly form of the disease.
While appropriate monitoring (such as regular ultrasound scans and simple blood tests to measure hormone levels) can potentially negate these adverse effects, such monitoring is sometimes not made available by the patient's practitioner. Unless the patient is informed of these risks and inquires about monitoring, some doctors simply prescribe the drug and rely on their patients' reports of ovulation symptoms as gauged by BBT charts or ovulation predictor kits to determine the effectiveness of treatment.
With the increase in reproductive technology's availability, and with more people sharing information about the pregnant possibilities, there is quite possibly an increase in patient demand for drugs like clomiphene citrate. In a culture inundated with the message that pills can solve practically any problem, it is easy to see how something as benign as getting pregnant could justify the overuse of clomiphene. It may be understandable that some practitioners see themselves as their patients' benefactors in the process.
The cost of misuse, however, is seen now periodically by over-treated or under-monitored individuals and may be seen later in the larger picture as, more and more, people choose to turn to medicine before even beginning to learn about their body's own abilities. Until further standards are created to which physicians should adhere (which may preclude some "fertility experts" from continuing to practice infertility therapy), patient beware.
© Tracy Morris
