Testing & Services for Male Fertility
The Department of Urology at UI Health offer a variety of specialized testing and service for male infertility, including:
- Semen Analysis
- Post-Vasectomy Sperm Count
- Pyospermia Analysis
- Post-Ejaculatory Urinalysis
- Sperm Viability Stain
- Sperm Bank
- OverNiteMale® Kit
Semen Analysis
Our comprehensive semen analysis utilizes a Computer-Assisted Sperm Analyzer (CASA) which measures total count, concentration, total motile sperm, velocity and complete vigor description of sperm motion. Sperm morphology (WHO Third edition- World Health Organization or Strict criteria) is performed following dehydration, fixation, and PAP staining. In addition, live/dead, volume, color, viscosity, liquefaction, turbidity, and white blood cell count are assessed.
The specimen must be produced on the laboratory site. There should be at least two to three days (but no more than five days) of sexual abstinence before producing the specimen. The specimen should be produced by masturbation. For other methods, consult your doctor.
Specimens are accepted Monday to Friday. Results are available to the physician the same or next day.
Post-Vasectomy Sperm Count
Post-vasectomy sperm count includes microscopic visualization of sperm cells.
Specimens are accepted Monday to Friday. Results are available to the physician the same day.
For additional servers see Pre & Post Vasectomy Services
Pyospermia Analysis
Human semen contains a population of round cells that are primarily immature sperm cells and/or white blood cells WBC that which are almost indistinguishable by light microscopy. In fertile patients, round cells usually represent less than 5% of the total cellular population in semen. Some semen samples contain high numbers of WBC, which may be associated with inflammation or infection and/or high numbers of immature sperm cells. Our laboratory offers an immunohistologic technique of WBC identification by monoclonal antibody. The high accuracy is the main advantage of this technique allowing the enumeration of all WBC in semen.
Specimens are accepted Monday to Friday. Results are available to the physician within one to two weeks.
Post-Ejaculatory Urinalysis
This is a diagnostic test to determine if the patient suffers from retrograde ejaculation (semen and sperm enter the bladder instead of the penis following emission). This situation most frequently occurs when the internal bladder-neck sphincter fails to close properly during ejaculation due to surgery, trauma, abnormal neural function (diabetic neuropathy, spinal cord injury), or use of certain anti-hypertensive drugs. Thus, the entire ejaculate or a portion of it enters the bladder. For this test, the patient is asked to produce a semen specimen by masturbation into a sterile container. Immediately following this, the patient urinates into sterile container(s), completely emptying his bladder. It is best if the patient begins this collection process with a partially filled bladder. The semen and urine specimens are transported to the laboratory, where each is examined microscopically for the presence of sperm. To do so, the urine specimen is centrifuged and the total number of sperm cells in the pellet is counted. For the semen, a count and motility of sperm is provided.
Specimens are accepted Monday to Friday. Results are available to the physician the same day.
Sperm Viability Stain
To determine the percentage of live sperm and percentage dead sperm in a specimen.
Sperm Bank
Sperm banking and long-term storage facilities are provided at the UI Health Andrology Laboratory. Men may require storage of sperm samples prior to vasectomy or potentially sterilizing therapy for cancer. This service is available Monday to Friday. The laboratory works directly with the depositor. A brochure is available upon request with instructions and costs. Samples can subsequently be picked up or shipped to the physician's office for use with artificial insemination at a later date.
OverNiteMale® Kit
Patients who have difficulty traveling to one of our offices to produce a sample on site can now produce at home and send it directly to our laboratory using our OverNiteMale® Kit. Semen samples are protected during shipment by a buffer media that protects the sperm. This process ensures the safe delivery of your specimen(s) to our laboratory for cryopreservation or testing.
