Launching ProPlodnost in Prague
I visited the Czech Republic for the first time to support the IVFCube Fertility Clinic in the official launch of ProPlodnost.
ProPlodnost is an endowment fund they have set up to educate people about reproductive health, explain common myths and provide free preventative health examinations for men and women aged between 25 and 38.
It meant I got a chance to look around the beautiful city of Prague, tour the clinic and meet some of the doctors, embryologists and other specialists in the Czech Republic.
The pilot phase of ProPlodnost was launched in June 2023, when the fund made the online fertility test available to the general public on its website. This enables people to get a basic idea of their reproductive health and the risks that threaten it. More than 2,000 interested people, mostly between the ages of 20 and 39, filled out the online questionnaire over four months.
Based on the results, over 200 respondents also completed a free fertility examination, which included a blood test for Anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) and an ultrasound examination for women, and a preventive spermiogram for men.
I was pleased to spend some time with Head Doctor at IVFCube Hana Višňová. She told everyone at the launch: “The interest in testing and the feedback from those involved confirmed our assumption that people have a lack of information about fertility, and much of it is distorted. Not to mention the lack of prevention, which women often mistakenly confuse with a preventive examination at a gynecologist and which is completely absent in men.”
Pavel Hanek, head of the urology department at the Příbram regional hospital, who has many years of experience in the treatment of male infertility added: "Men today have an average of 60% less sperm in their ejaculate than their fathers, not to mention the fact that with increasing age, sperm quality gradually decreases and the probability of various mutations and DNA damage increases. However, the number of men coming for a preventive spermiogram is still decreasing."
I was told that every fifth couple in the Czech Republic faces problems with conception, and the causes of infertility are equally divided between women and men. That fact shows how important the ProPlodnost Fund is.
I talked about my parents experience and how many of the problems they faced are the same today. Although there are many modern techniques, such as egg freezing, that can help people start a family later in life it is vital that people get all the information they need when they are youngr so that they know what may or may not work for them.
You can read more about ProPlodnost here