# what does it mean???



## Jenbal (Apr 27, 2014)

So, i am hoping someone can explain what my DH's SA results mean?

Volume: 1.2 million
Concentration: 9million
Sperm present: 10.8million
Total motility: 4%
Progressive motility: 2%
Normal forms: 1%


Is this awful or just a bit bad? Help


----------



## Jenbal (Apr 27, 2014)

Does no responses mean that this is awful but nobody wants to say??


----------



## one_day_maybe (Mar 18, 2013)

Hey, we're you not given reference ranges with your result?  These would tell you what a 'normal' result would be so you can compare.

Hopefully someone will come along soon who can help explain as its too long since we had a full SA for me to remember x


----------



## one_day_maybe (Mar 18, 2013)

Also you might want to repose in the Male Factors in Infertility, you may get more responses xx


----------



## Jenbal (Apr 27, 2014)

Thanks for the response.

I will do that. In regards to references, no. We were just told its not great and it was written with the results ' refer to fertility clinic'. No further explanation given.... 

We are attending The Lister in London soon so hopefully they will re test and explain in a bit more detail.

xx


----------



## hopeoneday1 (Mar 28, 2014)

hi jen bal did you find out what the results meant?

i had my sperm analysis results yesterday and my gp said all good but normal form was 1%.


MY RESULT                                                    Reference range
Sperm concentration  5.6x10 ml                  >20x10ml
Motile spermatoza    73%
Progressive Motility    71%                          >50%
Rapid progression      62%                          >25%
Normal Forms            1%                            >5%

Analysts comments : Reduced numbers of morpholoically normal sperm.

i still dont know if 1% is good or not?


----------



## Jenbal (Apr 27, 2014)

Hi hopeoneday1,


I still haven't found out.

We have our next appointment on 14th July so will be asking lots of questions about this.

It seems like I have waited for so long to get the ball rolling but this month is the month I have all of my appointments.

I will let you know what they say  

Jen x


----------



## Jenso (Jan 15, 2013)

If I remember correctly a result with over 20 million sperm is good, I think motility around 50% (this is basically the sperms that move forward) and around 6 % should have normal form.

I think this site explains it all: http://infertility.about.com/od/infertilitytesting/a/Understanding-Semen-Analysis-Results.htm


This post contains an unconfirmed link/information and readers are reminded that FertilityFriends.co.uk or its owners are not responsible for the content of external internet sites.


----------



## Jenbal (Apr 27, 2014)

Thanks Jenso,

Wow....So my DH's results are just as bad as I first thought!!

Will hopefully have a clearer picture of what to do next after the 28th July.

I hope something can be done. These results were taken 6 months ago and he has been taking vitamins since. He has another SA on 21st July.

Fingers crossed!!
xx


----------



## njr_26 (Aug 27, 2011)

Hi Jenbal

Sorry to hear about the sperm not being so good. Here is something copied from the immune board about improving sperm quality through vitamins and supplements. You need to allow 3 months for things to change though as this is how long it take sperm to be made. I apologise for the length of this, but I hope it helps:
20.6.34 Supplements for men
I think most/all men would benefit from a good men's multivitamin e.g., Wellman (preferably Wellman Conception) or one of the supermarket versions as that should ensure they have adequate zinc and selenium etc. For men who have motility and morphology issues or whose sperm count is borderline, supplements including antioxidants (e.g., pycnogenol, lycopene, N-acetyl cysteine, vitamin E, vitamin C, maca, resveratrol), zinc, selenium, and amino acids e.g., L-carnitine may help to improve sperm quality.

The key supplements that have been proven in studies to have a positive effect on sperm parameters include:
pycnogenol/maritime pine bark extract - e.g., 200mg - this is a lot higher than the doses included in branded supplements like Wellman (http://www.chiroonline.net/_fileCabinet/pycnog_pub.pdf). Pycnogenol supplements are available for around £0.35 per 30mg to £0.42 for 150mg capsule from healthfood stores.
lycopene (tomato extract) - e.g., 4mg - about the same as 1 tablespoon of tomato paste. Lycopene capsules are available from healthfood stores for about £0.22 for 10mg. (http://www.springerlink.com/content/v267846648jq2782/)
vitamin E and vitamin C - e.g., 1000mg of each - (http://www.andrologyjournal.org/cgi/content/abstract/26/3/349) these are higher than the doses included in branded supplements like wellman - but they are cheap to buy as individual supplements. SERUM in particular favour high doses of vitamin E. Vitamin E 170mg/400 IU capsule are available from supermarkets like Tesco and ASDA for £0.05 each and 500mg Vitamin C tablets for about £0.03 each. However, a few recent studies have suggested that for some dna fragmentation problems, very high dose vitamin C can have a pro-oxidant effect so they suggest using a mixture of several different lower dose antioxidants (e.g, bilberry, lycopene etc) plus B vitamins rather than a high dose of vit C.
zinc - e.g., 60mg (http://www.fertstert.org/article/S0015-0282(01)03229-0/abstract) - but the US NIH says you should avoid taking more than 40mg without medical advice. 15mg zinc tablets are available from supermarkets like tesco and asda for approximately £0.04 each.
folic acid - e.g., 400-5000 mg (http://www.fertstert.org/article/S0015-0282(01)03229-0/abstract) - 400mcg tablets are available from supermarkets like tesco and asda for approximately £0.01 each.
Selenium - e.g., 225mcg (http://informahealthcare.com/doi/abs/10.1080/01485010390129269) - 50mcg Selenium tablets are available from some supermarkets and health stores for about £0.03 each.
L-carnitine - e.g., 2000mg (more likely to benefit men who don't eat a lot of red meat - red meat contains a lot of carnitine) (http://www.fertstert.org/article/S0015-0282(02)04679-4/abstract) - L-carnitine tablets are available from health food stores for about £0.17 per 500mg tablet.
Omega 3 fish oil (DHA/EPA) - e.g., 1840mg (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21219381) 1000mg omega 3 fish oil capsules are available from supermarkets like Asda and tesco for approximately £0.05 per capsule.

A number of supplements claim to be 'complete' formulae for sperm e.g., Menevit (Australian), Proceptin (US), Proxeed (US), Wellman conception (UK), Fertilaid (US), Zita West vitamen & vitamen boost combination (UK) - but comparing them is very difficult, partly because the supplements made in the US do not disclose exactly what they contain (they describe using 'blends' of plant extracts but do not explain the exact compositions of these blends). Additionally, none of them seem to include the high doses of individual nutrients that have been used in studies, and none of them that I have seen include any significant amounts of omega 3 oils. As far as I can see, it would be better and cheaper to start with a supermarket men's multivitamin and then buy the individual high dose supplements separately (most of them are now available very cheaply at supermarkets e.g., Vitamin C, Vitamin E, Omega 3, folic acid, zinc with pycnogenol, selenium and L carnitine being available from many online stores and health food shops. However, that would mean taking 8-10 pills per day - although some of the branded formulae require you to take 6 pills a day (e.g., Zita West combination).

I have tried to compare some of the branded vitamins here:

https://spreadsheets1.google.com/pub?hl=en_GB&hl=en_GB&key=0Ah3l-_AvvCXydGI4STZ6Rm1mU1hBSEEzNjRxS3d3ZXc&output=html

Lifestyle changes like stopping smoking, cutting drinking, losing excess abdominal fat, avoiding tight pants, giving up arduous bicycling and avoiding medications like antidepressants can also make a big difference. Motility and morphology (which are related to DNA fragmentation) may also be improved by frequent ejaculation (but this is less beneficial for men with very low counts).

My understanding of studies on supplements is that they will probably not improve sperm count in men whose counts are very low (e.g., less than 1 million/ml) as those problems are more likely to be due to something permanent e.g., anatomical or other issues that have been present since birth. That is not to say that men with very low counts cannot achieve a healthy pregnancy e.g., with ICSI - but they are more likely to have problems with excessive DNA fragmentation so, after trialling an antioxidant supplement regime (and stopping alcohol and smoking) for at least 3 months, it may be worth having a sperm DNA fragmentation test. If DNA fragmentation is greater than 30%, the chances of a live, healthy baby are low (perhaps only 30% of normal). If fragmentation is between 15-30% the chances are lower than normal. Any one-off abnormal counts should be repeated as they could be due to a one-off problem like fever/infection in the last 3 months.

Personally, I also tried to discourage my partner from eating tuna fish (in case of elevated mercury), to reduce exposure to house paints (painters and decorators statistically have more male fertility problems due to the chemicals they are exposed to) and to cut his consumption of peas/beans/lentils/soya as they contain phytoestrogens that are thought to sometimes reduce sperm count. BPA, a chemical found in canned foods, polycarbonate plastic bottles and till receipts printed on thermal paper is associated with poor sperm (as well as poor egg quality). A diet high in antioxidants (plenty of fresh red/orange/green fruit and veg) and omega 3 (e.g., oily fish) and low in saturated fats should also help sperm parameters. Some studies have suggested that laptops on the knees, or keeping mobile phones in trouser pockets might be enough to raise the scrotal temperature leading to poor sperm.

This post contains an unconfirmed link/information and readers are reminded that FertilityFriends.co.uk or its owners are not responsible for the content of external internet sites.


----------



## Jenbal (Apr 27, 2014)

Njr_26,

Thank you SO much!!

I am now writing a long list of vitamins I need to buy DH this weekend  

I had no idea about some of this stuff.

This advice is invaluable!!

Thank you

Jen x


----------



## njr_26 (Aug 27, 2011)

You are most welcome. We are all here to help out. I wouldn't have my little boy if it wasn't for FF.


----------

