Semen Analysis
It is usually said that the problems of infertile couple, 40% of the time it is due to male factor, 40% due to female factor, and the remaining 20% due to both. Therefore, it is essential to perform an accurate semen analysis.
At The Guangzhou Elizabeth Clinic we endeavor to perform the most detailed semen analysis according to the latest recommendations, using the Thorn computerized system, thereby eliminating any observer bias or errors.
According to the WHO all semen samples should have their appearance, volume, liquefaction, viscosity, agglutination, pH, motility, leucocytes count, sperm count, vitality, morphology and anti-sperm antibodies tested.
A normal semen sample should have a white appearance (discoloration may indicate pus cells or presence of blood}, with a volume of greater than 2ml after 2 days abstinence.
On contact with air, semen coagulates after ejaculation, and over a period of time, this liquefies. Liquefaction should be complete within 1 hour after ejaculation. The viscosity at this stage should be of a watery consistency, and the pH no less than 7.2.
Agglutination is defined as motile sperms stuck together, and may indicate the presence of antibodies. Anti-sperm antibodies should also be tested for routinely in all samples, and any levels that are greater than 50% indicates a high probable immunological cause for the infertility.
Motility measures the percentage of moving sperms and is graded into
A. – Actively progressively motile
B. – Slowly progressively motile
C. – Non progressively motile
D. – Non motile
Normal semen at 1 hour post ejaculation should contain greater than 50% Grade A + B sperms with at least 25% grade A. The vitality of the sample (percentage of sperm that is alive, not necessarily motile) should be more than 50% at this stage.
Pus cells should also be looked for, and if it’s greater than 1 million /ml, it may indicate infection. The sperm count fluctuates enormously even in normal fertile man, they can produce samples that are lower than the minimum of 20 million/ml on occasions, and 2 samples at least should be required for semen analysis.
Normal morphology is defined as greater than 14%, or in other words, up to 86% of abnormal looking sperm still qualifies as within the normal limit. This might appear surprising, as not infrequently some analysis reports a normal morphology of greater than 60%, but these tests are not be based on the recommendation and criteria of the WHO, and should be interpreted with caution.
TEL： （+86）400-886-9268 / 15702442091 |
Email： insurance@eliza.hk
