Abstract
BackgroundAccording to our literature analysis, there are no data focused on spermatozoa emotional representations in childless men and data on the emotional repercussions of a diagnosis of infertility on men are still scarce. Thus, in this work, we investigated what the presence or absence of spermatozoa in the semen symbolize for men.Material and methodsTo answer this question, 441 childless heterosexual men participated in an anonymous, prospective, Internet-based survey.ResultsIn response to the question “What would having a high or normal sperm count symbolize for you?” the most frequent answer was “ability to father a child”. Men living with a partner were significantly more likely than single men to answer “ability to father a child” (p < 0.05) and less likely to answer “virility” and/or “ability to have an erection/ejaculation” (p = 0.001). In response to the question “If you found out that you had a low sperm count or no spermatozoa at all, how would you feel?”, most of the men stated that they would be disappointed. Men living with a partner were more likely to state that they would feel ashamed (p < 0.05) or guilty with regard to their partner (p < 0.0001).ConclusionsThese preliminary results should help us to improve (i) the way that male infertility is announced (it is easier to find the right words if one understands the possible importance of having a high sperm count) and (ii) the psychological, marital and sexual counselling provided to men with a diagnosis of infertility.
Highlights
The spermatozoon was first visualized in 1687 by the Dutch scientist Antonie van Leuvenhoek, who initially considered it to be a parasite with no apparent function
One can legitimately raise the following questions: what do spermatozoa mean to a man, and how do men feel about their spermatozoa? What does having a high or normal sperm count and what does having a low sperm count mean to men? To the best of our knowledge, there are no clear literature data on these questions in childless men who have never had a sperm analysis
When we searched the PubMed database with the following search terms: “male infertility” and “psychological”: this research produced 1,064 journal articles published between September, 1954 and May, 2016
Summary
The spermatozoon was first visualized in 1687 by the Dutch scientist Antonie van Leuvenhoek, who initially considered it to be a parasite with no apparent function. When we searched the PubMed database with the following search terms: “azoospermia” and “psychological”: this research produced “only” 49 journal articles published between February, 1965 and May, 2016. Among these studies, none answered to the questions we asked here. Results: In response to the question “What would having a high or normal sperm count symbolize for you?” the most frequent answer was “ability to father a child”. In response to the question “If you found out that you had a low sperm count or no spermatozoa at all, how would you feel?”, most of the men stated that they would be disappointed. Conclusions: These preliminary results should help us to improve (i) the way that male infertility is announced (it is easier to find the right words if one understands the possible importance of having a high sperm count) and (ii) the psychological, marital and sexual counselling provided to men with a diagnosis of infertility
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