Skip to main content Accessibility help

We use cookies to distinguish you from other users and to provide you with a better experience on our websites. Close this message to accept cookies or find out how to manage your cookie settings.

Close cookie message
×
Hostname: page-component-76fb5796d-2lccl Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-04-26T15:50:22.209Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Chapter 7 - Semen Analysis and Sperm Function Tests

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 June 2019

By
Hannah Williams  and
Sarah Martins da Silva
Edited by
Jane A. Stewart
Jane A. Stewart
Affiliation:
Newcastle Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
Get access

Summary

Semen analysis is a fundamental part of male fertility investigation. Samples are produced by masturbation, ideally in a private room nearby to the andrology laboratory or submitted within one hour if produced off-site. The ejaculate should be collected in a wide-mouthed, clean, glass or plastic container, from a batch confirmed to be non-toxic to spermatozoa. Patients should be given clear instructions about collection of their sample. To ensure consistency and reliable interpretation of results, there should be a minimum of two days and maximum of seven days abstinence (1), and the complete sample should be collected. Loss of the first portion of the ejaculate, which mainly comprises sperm-rich prostatic fluid, may significantly affect sperm count and concentration.

Type
Chapter
Information
Subfertility, Reproductive Endocrinology and Assisted Reproduction , pp. 48 - 54
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2019

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

World Health Organisation. Laboratory Manual for Examination and Processing of Human Semen. 5th edn. 2010.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Auger, J, Kunstmann, JM, Czyglik, F, Jouannet, P. Decline in semen quality among fertile men in Paris during the past 20 years. The New England Journal of Medicine. 1995 Feb 2;332(5):281–5. PubMed PMID: 7816062.Google Scholar
Jeyendran, RS, Van der Ven, HH, Rachagan, SP, Perez-Peleaz, M, Zaneveld, LJ. Semen quality and in-vitro fertilization. The Australian & New Zealand Journal of Obstetrics & Gynaecology. 1989 May;29(2):168–72. PubMed PMID: 2803129.Google Scholar
Menkveld, R, Wong, WY, Lombard, CJ, Wetzels, AM, Thomas, CM, Merkus, HM, et al. Semen parameters, including WHO and strict criteria morphology, in a fertile and subfertile population: an effort towards standardization of in-vivo thresholds. Human Reproduction. 2001 Jun;16(6):1165–71. PubMed PMID: 11387287.Google Scholar
Cooper, TG, Noonan, E, von Eckardstein, S, Auger, J, Baker, HW, Behre, HM, et al. World Health Organization reference values for human semen characteristics. Human Reproduction Update. 2010 May-Jun;16(3):231–45. PubMed PMID: 19934213.Google ScholarPubMed
Ivic, A, Onyeaka, H, Girling, A, Brewis, IA, Ola, B, Hammadieh, N, et al. Critical evaluation of methylcellulose as an alternative medium in sperm migration tests. Human Reproduction. 2002 Jan;17(1):143–9. PubMed PMID: 11756379.Google Scholar
Pregl Breznik, B, Kovacic, B, Vlaisavljevic, V. Are sperm DNA fragmentation, hyperactivation, and hyaluronan-binding ability predictive for fertilization and embryo development in in vitro fertilization and intracytoplasmic sperm injection? Fertility and Sterility. 2013 Apr;99(5):1233–41. PubMed PMID: 23290739.Google Scholar
Hwang, K, Lamb, DJ. The sperm penetration assay for the assessment of fertilization capacity. Mol Biol. 2013;927:103–111.Google Scholar
Irvine, DS, Twigg, JP, Gordon, EL, Fulton, N, Milne, PA, Aitken, RJ. DNA integrity in human spermatozoa: relationships with semen quality. Journal of Andrology. 2000 Jan–Feb;21(1):33–44. PubMed PMID: 10670517.Google Scholar
Robinson, L, Gallos, ID, Conner, SJ, Rajkhowa, M, Miller, D, Lewis, S, et al. The effect of sperm DNA fragmentation on miscarriage rates: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Human Reproduction. 2012 Oct;27(10):2908–17. PubMed PMID: 22791753.Google Scholar
Fernandez, JL, Muriel, L, Rivero, MT, Goyanes, V, Vazquez, R, Alvarez, JG. The sperm chromatin dispersion test: a simple method for the determination of sperm DNA fragmentation. Journal of Andrology. 2003 Jan-Feb;24(1):59–66. PubMed PMID: 12514084.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sailer, BL, Jost, LK, Evenson, DP. Mammalian sperm DNA susceptibility to in situ denaturation associated with the presence of DNA strand breaks as measured by the terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase assay. Journal of Andrology. 1995 Jan–Feb;16(1):80–7. PubMed PMID: 7768756.Google Scholar
Collins, AR. The comet assay for DNA damage and repair: principles, applications, and limitations. Molecular Biotechnology. 2004 Mar;26(3):249–61. PubMed PMID: 15004294.Google Scholar
Showell, MG, Mackenzie-Proctor, R, Brown, J, Yazdani, A, Stankiewicz, MT, Hart, RJ. Antioxidants for male subfertility. The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. 2014 Dec 15;Issue 12. PubMed PMID: 25504418.Google Scholar
Tremellen, K. Oxidative stress and male infertility--a clinical perspective. Human Reproduction Update. 2008 May–Jun;14(3):243–58. PubMed PMID: 18281241.Google Scholar
Shiva, M, Gautam, AK, Verma, Y, Shivgotra, V, Doshi, H, Kumar, S. Association between sperm quality, oxidative stress, and seminal antioxidant activity. Clinical Biochemistry. 2011 Mar;44(4):319–24. PubMed PMID: 21145315.Google Scholar

Save book to Kindle

To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure coreplatform@cambridge.org is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.

Available formats
×

Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

Available formats
×