Sperm Analysis to Detect Male Infertility, What Is the Procedure Like?

Medical Video: Semen Analysis | Male Fertility | Infertility | Sperm Donation | Manipal Hospitals

Gifted by children is the hope of many married couples. But there is no denying that infertility rates have increased in recent years. Even more surprising, of the total cases of difficult pregnancy, 30 percent were caused by male infertility. Sperm analysis is one form of male fertility testing that can be done before you and your partner try to get pregnant.

What is sperm analysis?

Sperm analysis is the first type of male fertility test done to find out if there is interference with sperm which makes it difficult to have children.

Sperm is needed in the pregnancy process to fertilize a woman's egg in the womb. If there is only one sperm abnormality (whether it's from the shape, amount, or speed of movement), then men are at high risk of having difficulty in having children or even being barren.

Actually, what is examined in this fertility test is not just sperm. During this test, all other factors contained in seminal fluid were also examined. Therefore, this fertility test is more accurately called the analysis of semen (semen).

What is normal sperm like?

When viewed from a microscope, the normal sperm head is oval with a length of 4.0-5.5 mm and a width of 2.5-3.5 mm. Normally, a thin neck measuring 1-2µm. In this section there should not be any remnants of the sperm maturation process.

Normal sperm tails have a length of 9-10 times the length of the head, shaped straight out of the neck or forming a wave groove.

Sperm is considered to have normal agility (motility) if 40% of all sperm can move freely, and at least 32% must swim in forward motion or in a large circle.

Steps for male fertility tests to check the feasibility of sperm

Every man is prohibited from engaging in any sexual activity (anal, oral, and / or vaginal penetration) either alone or in pairs for at least 48 hours before performing a sperm test.

In hospitals or fertility clinics at testing sites, lab technicians will ask you to submit semen samples obtained by masturbation. The seminal samples were then collected in sterile containers, which were given names, dates, times of expulsion, and long periods of abstinence from sexual activity.

Samples should be collected immediately at the test location to maintain good sample quality. If it must be done at home, the maximum sample collection and delivery limit is one hour before the test time. During the trip to the laboratory, the temperature of the sample must be between 20-40 ° C so as not to damage the quality.

Samples that have arrived in the laboratory should be analyzed as soon as possible. Analysis of semen consists of two types, namely macroscopic and microscopic examination (using a microscope).

Analysis of semen is done at least twice, spanning at least seven days or more than three months. If the results of the two examinations are very different, it needs to be checked once again. One sperm analysis cannot reflect the most accurate diagnosis.

Understand the results of your sperm analysis

When the sample is seen by naked eye through macroscopic testing, normal seminal fluid should be grayish white or pearl white, and smell like a typical acacia flower. Your semen is said to be normal if after checking the volume at least 1.5 milliliters, with a content of 15 million sperm cells per milliliter. After being removed, normal semen will quickly clot, but again melt again in approximately 60 minutes.

The normal pH level of semen should be around 7.2. If the pH is too alkaline (more than 8), this indicates a potential infection. If the pH of your semen is less than 7 (too acidic) and the amount of sperm is very small when viewed from a microscope, this may indicate a damage to the sperm channel that causes ejaculation problems such as retrograde ejaculation (reverse ejaculation).

Sperm can still function well if 4% of the total sperm cells in the sample are normal. If your sperm count is low when viewed through a microscope, but it turns out that it has a relatively good motion (60% or more sperm moves), then fertility problems need not be worried.

If the sample is found in many white blood cells, it should be suspected of infection in the male reproductive tract. Certain infections and / or diseases, such as diabetes, can affect your fertility indirectly. If the results of a male fertility test are declared abnormal or infertile, immediately arrange an appointment with a doctor to discuss the next treatment step.

Sperm Analysis to Detect Male Infertility, What Is the Procedure Like?

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