Semen characteristics in consecutive ejaculates with short abstinence in subfertile males

Abstract

This study reports the favourable semen characteristics of 73 subfertile oligozoospermic men with short abstinence periods up to 40 min. Semen characteristics were compared between initial and consecutive ejaculate showing improved semen parameters: progressive grade A spermatozoa, morphology and sperm concentration. Median concentrations in initial and consecutive ejaculates were 10 million/ml and 17 million/ml, respectively. The second sample had a higher median normal morphology (7% versus 6%, P < 0.001). The median of non-progressive spermatozoa (Grade C) was significantly lower in the consecutive sample than the initial sample (0% versus 5%, P < 0.01). Medians for slow progression spermatozoa (B grade) and immotile spermatozoa (D grade) were lower in the consecutive samples (20% versus 13%, P < 0.01 and 60% versus 50%, P < 0.001, respectively). The median for rapid motility (Grade A) was significantly higher in the consecutive sample than the first (30% versus 5%, P < 0.001). Overall median progressive motility as benchmarked by the WHO 2010 criteria was significantly higher in the consecutive sample (43% versus 25%, P < 0.001). Semen analyses of consecutive semen samples collected 30 min (mean) apart in oligozoospemic men should be checked routinely for diagnostic purposes and for managing potential subfertility treatment.

Sperm Parameters before and after Swim-Up of a Second Ejaculate after a Short Period of Abstinence

“…A short period of abstinence could result in a "younger" population of spermatozoa that have a lower period of exposure to the toxic effects of reactive oxygen species (ROS) [22]. The improvement may also depend on the increase in the total antioxidant capacity (TAC) of semen and lower sperm membrane lipid peroxidation (LPO), as recently reported [9,23,24]. This hypothesis is further supported by the decrease in the percentage of spermatozoa with fragmented DNA in semen samples collected after shorter abstinence periods [17,25].…”

“…In an assisted reproductive technique (ART) setting, the fertilization rate of spermatozoa obtained from a second ejaculate was significantly higher compared with that derived from the first one, suggesting that sequential ejaculations might be useful for treatment of male infertility [8]. More recently, Bahadur and colleagues clearly showed that the "median progressive motility as benchmarked by the WHO 2010 criteria were significantly higher in the second consecutive sample (43% vs. 25%, p < 0.001)" in subfertile oligozoospermic patients [9]. Alipour and colleagues showed not only higher percentages of progressive motile spermatozoa but also an improvement in sperm kinematic parameters after 2 h of abstinence compared with samples obtained after 4-7 days of abstinence [10].…”

Revisiting the impact of ejaculatory abstinence on semen quality and intracytoplasmic sperm injection outcomes

“…Several studies have suggested extremely short EA lengths (i.e. <1–4 h) due to their positive influence on semen parameters (Gosalvez et al ., ; Valsa et al ., ; Bahadur et al ., ; Mayorga‐Torres et al ., ; Ayad et al ., ). A recent systematic review of 28 studies suggested that longer EA is associated with increased semen volume and sperm count, which is also in agreement with our findings.…”

Optimization of laboratory procedures for intrauterine insemination: survey of methods in relation to clinical outcome

“…For example, the abstinence time for SA as advised by WHO (2–7 days) is used by many laboratories also for IUI (Table ). The WHO does, however, not give recommendations on this aspect for IUI, and shorter intervals are probably more effective for this treatment (Levitas et al ., , ; Bahadur et al ., ). The same is true for semen collection at home.…”