Women struggling to conceive have been advised not to delay seeking medical help, with consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist Dr Paul Koigi saying the recommended period for seeking assessment becomes shorter after the age of 35.
Koigi said women below 35 who have tried to become pregnant for one year without success should seek medical attention, while those aged above 35 should consult a doctor after six months of unsuccessful attempts.
Speaking on Radio Generation on Thursday, Koigi said fertility declines with age as ovarian reserve reduces, meaning that “the number and the quality of eggs starts going down”.
He said the changes can lower the chances of conception, making early assessment important for couples experiencing difficulties.
“As a consequence of which, we say that for those who are above the age of 35 and there are couples experiencing difficulty in conceiving, please start seeking medical help within six months,” Koigi said.
He urged couples not to wait until fertility difficulties have become more complicated before getting medical attention.
“We'd rather start the treatment processes early, establish the diagnosis so that you know exactly what you're dealing with before the problem escalates into a catastrophe and becomes harder to treat,” he said.
Koigi also pointed to sexually transmitted infections as another issue that can affect reproductive health, naming gonorrhoea and chlamydia among the infections that can contribute to fertility problems.
He cautioned that having several sexual partners without proper testing or protection can increase the chances of infections being passed between partners.
According to Koigi, condoms remain an important form of protection because they are “the only method of contraception that reduces the risk of sexually transmitted infections”.
The fertility expert also advised women against relying too often on emergency contraceptive pills, saying they are designed to deal with emergencies and should not replace regular family planning.
“I think it is incredibly important that we make the investment in having a proper mid-term or long-term method of family planning,” he said.
He said emergency contraception remains useful in certain situations, including cases involving gender-based violence, but warned against making it a routine contraceptive choice.
Koigi said women and couples have several longer-term family planning options available to them, including oral contraceptive pills, skin patches, three-month injections and hormonal or non-hormonal coils.
Some of the coil options, he said, can remain in use for several years, offering women alternatives to frequent emergency contraception.
He said seeking medical attention early can help couples identify what may be affecting their ability to conceive and allow treatment to begin before the fertility problem becomes more difficult to manage.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), infertility affects about one in six people globally and is defined as the failure to achieve pregnancy after 12 months or more of regular, unprotected sexual intercourse.
WHO's 2025 guideline on infertility recommends evidence-based approaches to the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of infertility and calls for equitable access to quality fertility care.
Kenya's Ministry of Health, in its 2025 National Family Planning Guidelines, defines infertility as inability to conceive after 12 months of regular, unprotected sexual intercourse. The guidelines call for counselling, information and appropriate referrals for individuals and couples experiencing infertility.
The Ministry's clinical guidelines also recommend systematic evaluation of both partners when pregnancy has not occurred after a year of adequate exposure, noting that infertility can result from either male or female factors.