Health 101: Infertility in Women

Do I need a fertility specialist?

If you're worried about how long it's taking to get pregnant, your first stop may be your ob-gyn or family doctor. He or she can perform basic tests to determine whether you're ovulating normally or may be experiencing problems with your fallopian tubes, ovaries, or uterus. While your regular doctor may be able to prescribe drugs that jump-start ovulation or perform outpatient procedures to treat fibroids or endometriosis, for example, you'll need to see a specialist for more complex procedures like IVF.

A fertility specialist -- officially called a reproductive endocrinologist or RE -- is an ob-gyn who has had an extra three years of training (on top of four years of regular ob-gyn education). After completing these seven years of training, doctors take a series of written and oral tests to become board certified in reproductive endocrinology.

Women 35 or older, or who know they have health conditions that may affect fertility, may choose to bypass their own doctors and head straight to an RE. You usually don't need a referral to visit a reproductive endocrinologist.