I’m 40 years’ old and have been married for 3 years. We’ve been trying to have a child and I’m thinking of trying artificial insemination. I have heard though that it has a low success rate. Am I wasting more time?

Endometrial insemination has been used since the early days of assisted reproduction in various forms. It can offer a better success rate compared with natural conception, especially for couples who don’t have any serious problem, though it does lag behind IVF treatment quite markedly. Also before you opt for insemination, you should know that there are certain pre-requisites, such as passable fallopian tubes and a good spermogram, for there to be success. If you and your husband meet these pre-requisites, you can try for a while with this method. But since you are already 40, this time should be fairly brief. For that reason we suggest that after one or two attempts – if unsuccessful – so as not to give up or get discouraged, go on to IVF. In this way you won’t have lost much time and you will have used all the tools at our disposal today in assisted reproduction.