What tests should both partners have?
The short answer
A complete evaluation covers ovulation, ovarian reserve, the uterine cavity, tubal patency, a semen analysis and thyroid. Male factors contribute in 40 to 50% of cases.
What to know
- Ask for the list out loud and check each item off. Partial workups are where things get missed.
- A semen analysis is simple, cheap and fast — there is no good reason to defer it.
- An abnormal result usually needs repeating once before it means anything.
- "Normal" without a tubal test and a semen analysis isn't a complete normal.
- Some commonly ordered tests aren't routinely recommended. It's fine to ask why one is on the list.
What you can do now
- Test together, not one after the other. It saves months.
- Men: the next two to three months count. No smoking, keep cool, keep alcohol moderate. What actually helps.
Read the full explanation
Male factors contribute in roughly 40 to 50 percent of couples with infertility, and the male test is the simplest one there is. Yet it's the one most often skipped or delayed.
For the partner producing sperm
A semen analysis: volume, sperm concentration, motility (movement), and morphology (shape). It should be done at the start of the evaluation, not after the female workup comes back normal. If it's abnormal, it's usually repeated once, and a referral to a reproductive urologist may follow.
For the partner with ovaries
Ovulation assessment (often just cycle history; sometimes a mid-luteal progesterone level), ovarian reserve (AMH, antral follicle count, or day 2–4 FSH and estradiol), and an evaluation of the uterus and tubes (ultrasound, plus an HSG to check the tubes — a plain saline sonogram looks at the cavity but not the tubes). Thyroid testing is commonly included.
The point
A complete evaluation looks at both people at the same time. If you're several months into testing and one partner hasn't been evaluated, the evaluation isn't complete, and it's reasonable to say so.
What the research shows
Not rated, deliberately. This page explains how something works rather than claiming a treatment helps, so a rating would mean nothing. Everything traces to the sources below.
Questions for your doctor
Edit any of these before you add it — they're yours. Your list stays in this browser, and you can print a one-page sheet from it.
- Has my partner had a semen analysis? If not, can we order one now?
- Which parts of a complete evaluation have we actually done, and which haven't we?
Sources
- ASRM, Fertility evaluation of infertile women: a committee opinion (2021)
- ACOG, Evaluating Infertility (FAQ)