
Problems with ovulation are common and account for 25% of female infertility cases. Fertility medications help cause regular ovulation by stimulating the ovaries to produce, mature, and release one or more eggs per cycle.
Women who could benefit from treatment cycles with ovulation induction (OI) medications may have:
- No ovulation (called anovulation)
- Infrequent ovulation (called oligo-ovulation)
- Minimal to mild endometriosis
Ovulation is required in order to conceive, but the menstrual cycle is extremely sensitive and can be disrupted easily. Many factors cause anovulation and oligo-ovulation, including hormonal imbalances, polycystic ovaries (PCOS), and obesity.
Fertility medications controlling ovulation are prescribed on their own or as an integrated regimen with intrauterine insemination (IUI) or assisted reproductive technology (ART) procedures like in-vitro fertilization (IVF). Although there are a wide variety of medicines available, there are two main types of drugs used in ovulation induction: estrogen-blocking oral medications, and injectable gonadotropins.
Estrogen-blocking oral medication

What women can expect in a cycle
Gonadotropins

What women can expect in a cycle
Ovulation induction and IVF
Often, ovulation induction is used in conjunction with ART procedures like IVF to stimulate more than one follicle per cycle.
Know your options for stateside infertility services, and how to preserve your fertility before deployment.