Effects of microsurgical varicocelectomy on semen analysis and sperm function tests in patients with different grades of varicocele: Role of sperm functional tests in evaluation of treatments outcome.

Abstract

It seems that varicocele play a role in male infertility, as such, their prevalence increases from 15% in the normal population to 80% in secondary infertility subjects. Varicoceles may have negative effects on semen quality. Our goal was to assess the effects of microsurgical varicocelectomy on semen analysis and sperm functional tests in men with different grades of varicoceles. Thirty infertile men with different grades of varicoceles (grades 1 to 3) were enrolled in our study. Semen quality was assessed by semen analysis according to the WHO guideline (WHO, 1999) and four different sperm functional tests (aniline blue, toluidine blue, chromomycin A3 and TUNEL test) were carried out before and 3months after microsurgical varicocelectomy (M-varicocelectomy). When considered all three grades together, we showed that M-varicocelectomy had statistically significant effects on all four types of sperm functional tests (p value<0.05). It also had positive effects on conventional semen parameters, although the effects were not statistically significant for some parameters (for example sperm count). When analysed separately (based on varicocele grades) the surgery, although caused improvements in semen quality, but may have more statistically significant effects on patients with varicocele of higher grade. In addition, in varicocele of lower grade (for example grade 2), sperm function test may be a better predictor of surgical success than the conventional semen analysis. Thus, we show that not only M-varicocelectomy has significant positive effect on semen quality but also if sperm functional tests become more affordable in the future, because they yield more precise results, their use in daily practice may increase significantly in patients with varicoceles.