Infertility and fertility treatments
Fertility treatments can be given to opposite-sex couples, female couples and single women who are planning to have a baby. Treatments are offered by public health services and private clinics.
In public health services, treatments is available for women around 40 years at the most. At private clinics, this age limit may be slightly higher.
A couple should consider infertility testing if they have been trying for a baby unsuccessfully for about a year. Treatments for the infertility can be started based on the testing.
Also single women and female couples who are planning to have a baby may be able to do so with the help of fertility treatment.
When a female couple has a baby through fertility treatment, the maternity of the other mother must be confirmed separately. Paternity also has to be confirmed if the child is born through fertility treatment to man and woman who are not married. Read more about confirming parentage from the page Confirming the paternity of a father or the maternity of another mother.
A fee is always charged for fertility treatments:
- The person treated always pays for the possible drug costs.
- Only the client fees are charged for treatment in public healthcare.
- Private clinics charge for the treatment according to their own prices and their treatments are usually more expensive than in public healthcare.
If infertility is due to a medical reason, you can apply to Kela for reimbursements of the treatment and drug costs. Treatment given for a reason other than a medical reasons does not entitle to a reimbursement from Kela.
The treatment aims to find out the possible causes of infertility and select a suitable method of treatment. Treatment options include:
- ovulation induction i.e. stimulation of ovulation with hormone therapy
- artificial insemination
- IVF i.e. in vitro fertilization.
Either the clients’ own or donated gametes or embryos can be used in the treatment. Different hormone therapies are used in the treatment. If there is a risk of a hereditary disease in the family, it is possible to carry out a preimplantation genetic diagnosis, an examination of the embryo created through fertility treatment.
Successful treatment, meaning that a child is born, depends of many things, including the reasons for infertility, the woman’s age and the form of treatment used.