Azoospermia- How Sperms Are Collected?

Azoospermia means absence of any sperms in the semen. If there is Azoospermia, we advise to repeat the test after few days, preferably from a second laboratory. Sometimes, careful examination may reveal few sperms.If the second test also suggests no sperms, we need to find out the cause by some tests- physical examination, blood tests and sometimes ultrasound.

What is the next step?

If the pituitary gland is found to be defective, the treatment gives excellent results by hormone replacement, which will improve the sperm count and you can father your baby by natural conception. However, in other cases, it may not be possible to improve your sperm count by any medicines, still you can father your baby using your own sperms. 

How actual treatment is done?

In most cases the men are offered a special type of IVF (In Vitro Fertilization) using the technique called ICSI (Intracytoplasmic sperm injection). Your wife will be given some injections to mature her eggs, which will be collected under anaesthesia. The sperms collected from your body are directly injected, under the microscope, inside the eggs.

How Sperms are actually collected from the body?

If any obstruction in your sperm-conducting passage is suspected, sperms can be collected from the epididymis (small gland above the testis) by small needle (PESA- Percutaneous Epididymal Sperm Aspiration) or and or sometimes, by a small cut (MESE Microsurgical Epididymal Sperm Extraction). All these are done under anaesthesia. If these fail, TESA or TESE are done to collect the sperms.

If there is problem in sperm production, there may still be some sperms found inside the testes. These can be collected using small needle (TESA- Testicular Sperm Aspiration),or a small cut in the testes (TESE- Testicular Sperm Extraction); all under anaesthesia. 

In all cases, sperms can be frozen for future use.

What are the chances that sperms can be collected?

If there is obstruction, the chance is nearly 100%. That means, out of 100 such men, almost all cases, sperms can be obtained from his body. 

If it’s due to inadequate sperm production from the testes, then the chance of collecting sperms is 50-60%.

Conclusion

Azoospermia is not the end of treatment. Never lose hope. It’s important to find out the cause by number of tests so that you can be helped to father your own baby by collecting sperms from your body.