The average man has two questions about the possible delivery of such an analysis as a spermogram - why and how. Despite the fact that medicine has already officially proven that in about 40% of cases of family infertility, it is representatives of the strong half of humanity that are guilty, most men continue to underestimate their own capabilities and even their absence.
The decision to go to the clinic and have a spermogram is often seen by them as a real feat when the family needs to be saved. In order for the results of the analysis to be reliable, non-erroneous, a man must know the rules for preparing and donating sperm. We will talk about this in more detail.
Indications for analysis
A spermogram, which is a thorough laboratory study of the quantitative and qualitative indicators of sperm, is recommended for a man to take if the family decided to start planning a pregnancy. It is at the planning stage, and not when the couple goes to the doctor with complaints about the inability to conceive a child.
Early detection of abnormalities in the quality and functionality of sperm will help the family save a lot of time, nerves and money that the couple will spend on unsuccessful attempts to conceive in other ways, if the cause of infertility lies in the man.
If the spermogram was not taken in advance, it's time to think about the likelihood of such an examination, if during the year a couple with unprotected sex and regular intercourse cannot conceive a baby.
A couple in which a woman is over 35 years old or a man is over 45 years old is recommended to start “ringing the bells” if sex without contraception does not lead to pregnancy within six months.
A spermogram is performed for a man and in case of infertility in a woman.
In that case, if the treatment does not provide the desired result, the couple will be offered modern reproductive assistive methods, such as IVF, ICSI, intrauterine insemination. For all these methods, it is important to have healthy sperm that can fertilize the egg quickly and efficiently through the mediation of doctors.
A man's spermogram can be recommended as a control diagnosis after suffering injuries of the genitals, infections, including those ailments that are sexually transmitted. After treatment, the doctor will definitely give recommendations to check the quality of the semen in the laboratory.
Men whose wives have had miscarriages several times in a row or have had frozen pregnancies, especially in the early stages... This may indirectly indicate that the sperm that fertilized the egg was subject to mutation, and therefore a normal healthy pregnancy did not work out.
Men should definitely donate semen for analysis before becoming a sperm donor. Also, those who decide to cryopreserve their genetic material, in particular sperm, are sent for analysis. Freezing "for the future" is a good option to become dads sometime later. Cryopreservation is often chosen by professional military personnel who work in combat conditions, as well as men whose work activities are associated with hazardous and harmful production, where there is a high probability of exposure to toxins and radiation.
About the essence of spermogram
A sample of the semen of a man is subject to careful examination under high-precision modern microscopes, using special devices - sperm analyzers. During the study, the doctor estimates the number of different parameters:
- liquids;
- live and motile spermatozoa;
- healthy and ideal for fertilization of germ cells.
Each parameter matters - from counting live and active cells to assessing the morphological qualities of sperm according to Kruger. These criteria make it possible to "sort" normal reference cells from spermatozoa susceptible to mutations, having deformities and pathologies in their own structure. Nature does not provide for healthy offspring from such cells.
The analysis gives not only a complete picture of how a man is capable of fertilization, but also reveals some pathologies of the male reproductive system, detecting signs of inflammation or infection in the seminal fluid. So, in the seminal fluid, impurities of blood, pus can be present, pathogenic microorganisms, a large number of leukocytes, macrophage cells, antibodies to spermatozoa in immunological infertility can be detected.
Based on the results of the spermogram, hidden infections can be revealed that the man did not even know about, for example, mycoplasma, chlamydia, ureaplasma and others.
Accurate diagnoses will help establish other tests, in particular, blood tests and a smear from the urethra, but suspicions of these ailments, which are asymptomatic, may arise precisely after passing a spermogram. Today it is spermogram is considered the most accurate and informative technique to judge the state of a man's fertility.
Training
For the results to be most accurate, a man should prepare as carefully as possible for the upcoming examination. To do this, you need to understand what factors can affect the state of the ejaculate:
- external factors - air temperature, cleanliness of dishes into which material is collected for laboratory research;
- internal factors - they are much more numerous. The state of sperm is influenced by the state of health of a man, his well-being, what he eats and drinks and even the ecological characteristics of the area in which he lives.
To correctly take a spermogram, you need to complete several points, which we will discuss in more detail.
Nutrition
The food that a man eats is necessarily reflected in the composition of the ejaculate. Therefore, before donating semen, you should stop eating spicy foods - pepper, mustard and other spices in about 7-8 days.
An abundance of salty and smoked foods is also considered undesirable. You should temporarily stop taking strong coffee and tea, even if the man does not see the beginning of the working day without a cup of coffee.
You can replace the usual coffee with a drink made of chicory - the taste is almost the same, but there is no caffeine that affects the motility and vitality of the germ cells of sperm. The ban is imposed on all fatty foods, pickled foods and canned food.
In order for the amount of ejaculate to be sufficient at the time of delivery, and the mobility of the germ cells is at the peak of its activity, a man should eat balanced for a week or even a little more.
Protein-rich foods must be present in his diet. Low-fat red meat, steamed or oven-cooked fish, milk porridge, vegetable puree are examples of proper nutrition before a spermogram.
It will be good if the diet includes baked or stewed pumpkin, fresh herbs, raw vegetables and fruits. Be sure to eat cottage cheese, milk, dairy products.
Bad habits
Alcohol makes sperm more liquid, reduces the number of mobile and healthy germ cells, and the systematic intake of alcoholic beverages causes mutational processes in the structure of sperm cells, as a result of which the likelihood of both infertility and the conception of a child with severe genetic pathologies increases, since the sperm is a carrier of genetic information.
Narcotic substances are even more destructive. AND nicotine reduces the number of motile sperm, and this is also a fact proven by medicine.
If a man has bad habits, it is advisable to say goodbye to them at the pregnancy planning stage at least 3 months in advance. This is the time required for the process of spermatogenesis to complete, and the sex cells are completely renewed. If this has not been done, then you should refrain from beer and stronger drinks for at least 7-9 days before taking the spermogram.
In most cases, men cannot stop smoking, but they should at least 2 times reduce the amount of tobacco they consume, and on the day of the test, refrain from smoking altogether.
Sexual activity
About three days before the appointed day, a man should limit his sexual activity - not to have sexual intercourse and not to masturbate. Otherwise, the amount of sperm will be insufficient for research, and its consistency will be liquid (the number of sperm will be reduced).
Abstinence exceeding 4-5 days is also undesirable, because it leads to thickening of the seminal fluid, aggregation, the formation of clots, as well as a decrease in the number of living and healthy sperm.
Medicines, treatment
If a man took antibiotics, then at least 3 weeks should elapse between the last day of treatment and the delivery of a spermogram. If hormonal treatment was prescribed, then the pause should be kept longer - at least a month.
Anti-inflammatory drugs of non-hormonal origin, which a man could take recently, as well as pain medications, affect the composition of sperm for about 10 days.
Psychotropic drugs and anticonvulsants are excreted from the body for about 7 days. This should be taken into account when preparing for a spermogram.
If the treatment continues, and there is no way to temporarily stop taking the drugs, then the spermogram should be postponed until a later time, when the therapy of the underlying disease is completed.
If a man goes in for sports and takes some hormonal drugs, for example, steroids, they should be abandoned about 2 months before the test.
General health
A man within 5-6 days before delivery should be more attentive to his well-being and body signals. Any acute illness, exacerbation of chronic ailments will distort the picture of reproductive health. So, with flu or ARVI, a large number of sperm cells die against a background of high temperature.
A spermogram taken at the beginning of the disease, in its midst or immediately after recovery, will show abnormalities in the number of viable germ cells, and a man may be mistakenly diagnosed with infertility.
If it was not possible to protect yourself from infection, and signs of a viral disease appeared or old "sores" became aggravated, you should inform the doctor about this and postpone the spermogram until a later time.
Temperature regime
Before taking the spermogram, you should refuse to visit the bath, sauna, solarium for about 10 days. In these places, the male genitals are heated, which leads to an increase in the number of dead germ cells in the ejaculate.
Even if a man loves to go to the bathhouse and does it every week, the next trip should be postponed until better times. It is also not recommended to sunbathe on the beach in the summer and use the car seat heater in the cold season.
Physical activity
In general, when preparing, a man should lead a familiar lifestyle. However, if his activities are associated with hard physical labor, professional sports, the load on the body should be limited for a week.
It is advisable to stop working on the night shift for this week and be sure to get enough sleep at night. Excessive physical activity can negatively affect the composition of the semen. Therefore, it makes sense to temporarily refuse to visit the gym as well.
Psychological attitude
Good mood and calmness largely ensure the normal functioning of the human reproductive system. It is not recommended to be nervous, depressed or emotionally overexcited before the test.
All clarifications of relations with the authorities, as well as skydiving and other activities that can affect the mental state, should be postponed until later.
Mechanical effect on the genitals
Before the spermogram, massage of the prostate and scrotum should not be practiced. These procedures are usually helpful, but not before assessing semen status.
The prostate can begin to produce more juice, which leads to sperm thinning. Also, do not wear tight tight underwear, tight swimming trunks.
How is the material for research submitted?
The very process of donating sperm looks quite traditional, a man will not experience any unpleasant sensations. There are two ways to collect material for analysis - in the clinic and at home. The Ministry of Health gives certain recommendations on this matter, calling delivery in a medical institution more preferable.
The man is given a sterile container for biomaterials and is left alone in an office with adult magazines. By masturbating, he receives a sample of semen, which must be collected in a container. The material is immediately sent to the laboratory.
A big plus of such a surrender is efficiency, because sperm reaches laboratory technicians just a few minutes after ejaculation, and the accuracy of the study increases. The downside is the psychological discomfort that a man who is forced to masturbate in unfamiliar conditions may experience.
At home, the collection of seminal fluid completely eliminates psychological discomfort, because a man is familiar with the situation.
If this option is agreed in the clinic in advance, then the man will be given a sterile container and a special medical condom that does not contain a lubricant that destroys sperm. In it, a man can have a full-fledged sexual intercourse with a partner, after which he needs to collect the material in a container and deliver it to the laboratory.
At home, a man can also obtain material for research through masturbation, including with the participation of his wife. There are plenty of options for getting sperm.
It is important to remember that the jar must be sterile, hands clean, and the container must be delivered to the laboratory no later than an hour later, and preferably earlier.
During transportation, the ambient temperature should be close to the human body temperature. You can use special medical thermal containers for the transportation of biomaterials, or you can, and this has been tested by generations of men, install a tightly closed container with sperm in the wife's bust, between the mammary glands, and so, together with his wife, deliver it to the laboratory.
Common mistakes
The most common mistake of men who take a spermogram, especially if they are taking an analysis for the first time, is that they collect sperm in a plastic or glass non-sterile container.
Plastic jars that are not designed for body fluids can contain toxic impurities that kill germ cells even before semen reaches the laboratory. Sometimes men bring semen in a condom for analysis. An ordinary, even the best condom, is not suitable for storing sperm, and even more so for transporting it.
If the collection is carried out in a medical condom, then sperm cannot be transported in it either.
Disregarding the recommendations of doctors, men sometimes believe that material can be collected through interrupted intercourse. Being confident that they will "have time", many in fact do not remove the penis in time and collect material, as a result of which sperm is not obtained in full, it contains impurities of vaginal secretions, blood cells (for example, from the genital tract or cervix women with erosion).
Having received one negative test, many men are in no hurry to retake it and immediately begin treatment.
Experts recommend that it is imperative to retake the spermogram 7-10 days after the first analysis if the test result was disappointing.
Refusal to undergo a spermogram is also a common mistake. This is "sinned" by men who already have children in this or previous marriage, but faced with the impossibility of conceiving the next baby.
If a man already has children, this does not mean that nothing has happened to his sperm during the time that has passed since the previous fertilization that could affect its properties. Toxins, radiation, nervous stress, poor environmental conditions, bad habits eventually do their detrimental work, and a man's fertility may decrease.
Contraindications
All men who are going to have this analysis need to prepare for a spermogram. Without preparation, you can get wrong, false results, and often these results are false negative.
The analysis is not performed in the following cases:
- A man has inflammatory processes in the body, regardless of where they are located against a background of high temperature.
- The man has in the acute stage inflammatory processes of the genitourinary system.
- The patient got sick with flu, SARS or other infections.
- The man is being treated with antibiotics, hormonal drugs, and drugs for the treatment of cancer.
- The patient has exacerbated chronic diseases.
In all these cases, the examination is postponed to a later time.
The analysis is done from several hours to several days, on average it takes about a day. A form is issued with the results entered into it without decoding. The attending physician deals with the interpretation of the spermogram.
About what a spermogram is and how the analysis is deciphered, see below.
