The spermogram: what is it and what do I have to do?
When a couple is looking for a baby and the pregnancy does not occur, the normal thing is to go to specialists and do a fertility study. And the most common test in men is the seminogram.
It is also called spermiogram, sperm culture or seminal culture.
It is a simple process, but you have to be careful in the sample collection.
After all, it needs to be taken correctly to avoid having to repeat it and for the analysis results to be correct. These results are based on the parameters established according to the WHO World Health Organization
But don't panic, with a few simple tips you will see how we can solve all your doubts.
Differences between seminal analysis laboratories
The first thing you have to know is whether the sperm analysis will be done in a laboratory specializing in assisted reproduction or in a general laboratory.
Why is this relevant? Because Some have a sample collection room and others do not.
Semenograms in reproduction laboratories
In assisted reproduction laboratories they do have spaces where you can seek privacy, in the collection room, and so that you feel relaxed to obtain the sample right there. You save yourself from having to worry about safe transportation. Furthermore, in these laboratories it is possible to perform complementary tests such as spermatic training, REM (Recovery of Mobile Sperm), swim up, or more precisely assess some parameters such as concentration, morphology or mobility, among others.
The spermiogram in a general laboratory
In general laboratories, which are where all types of analyzes are performed (blood, urine, etc.), they do not usually have spaces specially designed for obtaining the semen sample. So the most normal thing is to take it from home.
If that is your case, you must keep in mind that precautions must be taken during transportation so that it does not spoil. In both types of laboratories they will ask you for certain days of abstinence, normally 3 to 5, but be sure and ask the laboratory where you want to go what sexual abstinence requirements they ask for for the spermiogram test.
But starting from the beginning...
How to obtain the seminal sample
Whether at home or in the laboratory collection room, the sample is collected in a sterile wide mouth container. Do you know what urine collection ones are like? Well, those same ones, like this one in this link: link bottle shows semen
They will provide it to you at the reproduction laboratory or clinic, but if not, you can buy it at the pharmacy.
Which You should never use a condom to collect the sample.. Keep in mind that condoms contain spermicides, which weaken sperm.
You should also not use ointments, lubricating creams or even saliva. And forget to use the coitus interruptus. Your penis must be clean, just wash it with soap and water.
Semen sample collection
How is the semen sample collected? Not sure what it will be like to collect your semen on a boat?
It's no use telling you that it's easy if you don't see it for yourself: if this worries you, you can practice before the day you have to deliver the sample with a seminogram bottle. It is a very good idea for you to check if the whole process is easy for you: relaxing, masturbating, what to do with the boat while, aiming, etc.
Only one drawback with the previous advice: don't do it just the day before the test. A few days of abstinence are recommended.
Depending on the laboratory, they will indicate more or fewer days of sexual abstinence, but it is usually between 2 and 5 days. There is no scientific evidence that greater abstinence results in a greater quantity and quality of sperm in the sample.
It may interest you:
How to transport the semen sample
Once you have the sample for the seminogram or spermiogram, there is not much to worry about, following a few simple tips you will see how it is perfectly feasible:
- Time: estimate about 45 minutes from collection to delivery to the laboratory.
- The light: it must be dark, as when it is inside the human body. Covering the jar with aluminum foil will suffice.
- Temperature: needs to be controlled. Although it allows a fairly wide range, between 20 and 40ºC. In the laboratory they have plates with regulated temperature for the samples, but in your case you will have to do it with your body temperature.
For practical purposes, what you have to do for the semen analysis to be valid is to leave the house as soon as you obtain the semen sample and prevent it from losing temperature by maintaining the boat next to the body.
But you may still be wondering what exactly they are going to analyze. It is normal, it is a process that can involve many doubts and a certain discomfort. We will clarify it for you below.
What exactly is a spermogram?
Once the semen sample is delivered, the laboratory will take very little time to analyze it. It is analyzed at a macroscopic and microscopic level, to be able to evaluate it as a whole.
What they will do is quantitative analysis, to know the concentration of sperm, the volume of the ejaculate, etc.
And also a qualitative analysis, to know what its quality, color, viscosity and pH are like, among others.
That is why the sample must collect the entire ejaculate: if part falls out or spills, it would have to be repeated another day.
Keep in mind that not all ejaculate is sperm. In fact, and beware, this information is going to surprise you: The percentage of sperm in the semen of a healthy and fertile man is between 5 and 10%.
Semen is everything ejaculated and in the ejaculate there are many more things than sperm. The rest are fluids necessary to lubricate the passage of sperm, protect them and give them the environment and capabilities necessary for them to be fertile.
So, if you look at the results you get from the lab before the reproductive specialist sees them, don't be alarmed if you see low percentages! Let a doctor examine it and make the diagnosis.
Obtain the sample: simple and easy
As you have seen, collecting a semen sample to have a seminogram done and evaluate your fertility is not complicated at all.
Yes, you are going to need to be calm, but if you have read the article, with all the information and even practicing at home, you will see that it is so simple that there is no reason to get tense.
If you do the collection in the lab and you don't know if you will be relaxed enough for masturbation to be successful, talk to them, ask them to show you the collection room, and familiarize yourself with the surroundings before the day of your appointment.
As a summary, here is what you should keep in mind:
- Respect the abstinence that they tell you.
- Use a sterile wide-mouth bottle: the pharmacy kind.
- If you are going to obtain it at home, go to the laboratory in less than an hour.
- Protect it from light and keep it at body temperature. Please note the room temperature, if it is very cold, keep it close to the body.
And most importantly, ask all the questions you need. In the laboratory or in your reproduction center they will help you without hesitation.
Most relevant data that you are going to obtain from the seminogram
Now you are clear about how the sample is obtained and processed, this whole process, wherever you do it, will give you very useful information about the percentage of mobile sperm in the ejaculate, how many of them have a normal shape as well as the number of sperm per ejaculate, sperm per milliliter, percentage of live sperm and the presence of leukocytes.
All of this according to the reference values of the World Health Organization, which also dictates that the volume of the ejaculate should be greater than 1.5 ml. Do not worry if you think that there is little sample in the seminogram bottle, and that it is also very normal to have a high percentage of immotile sperm or sperm with poor morphology according to the same WHO in a sample of normozoospermia that would be considered normal within the male population.
These data will be the basic male study in order to determine the semen quality and assess whether assisted reproduction treatment is necessary or not, what the insemination or In Vitro Fertilization or if, on the contrary, there is no impediment on the part of the male for the sperm to safely reach the woman's uterine tubes.
Semenogram results
Apart from the basic semen analysis results that we have mentioned, you should know that the waiting time to receive the report can vary greatly from one laboratory to another or from one center to another. There are some centers that can give you a report the same day and others can take up to a week. In some they will give you aOn a sheet with the written data and another a notebook with color graphs and a photo of your sperm, But don't be fooled by this, whatever the report is, it will give the most relevant data about your sample and that is what is important.
We hope that with this post you will not have any doubts about how to do the seminogram. Keep in mind that this is the basic test and that there are many more such as sperm fragmentation or FISH on sperm. Surely there is a team of specialists near you who will help you on your path to fertility and guide you in knowing which tests are the most appropriate to enhance your fertility and get closer to pregnancy.
Regarding other posts that may interest you, here are two:
- Male fertility: Three tips to improve it
- What options do we have to do spermograms from home, what variables can we evaluate from the privacy of your home? Here is a post about home male fertility tests, types and reliability. Home male fertility tests, are they reliable?
