Male Infertility

Male infertility occurs in approximately one third of all couples experiencing difficulty in getting pregnant. The diagnosis of male infertility is achieved through the male partner producing a semen sample. This is normally produced through masturbation into a sterile specimen pot. However, if this is difficult for the male, most clinics will be able to provide a special condom, which does not contain chemicals that will affect the sperm. The couple can have intercourse at home using this condom and then pour the contents of the condom into the sterile specimen pot provided.

The sample is assessed, and a range of parameters recorded. The main three are:

• Count-the number of sperm present
• Motility-the proportion of moving/swimming sperm
• Morphology-the proportion of normal looking sperm