Sperm Morphology: Unstained and Stained Smears in Fertile and Infertile Men

Abstract

Two semen specimens from 34 fertile donors and 82 male partners of infertile couples were evaluated for semen quality. Sperm morphology was evaluated with unstained specimens and following Papanicolaou staining. A significant difference (p < 0.001) was found in the percentage of morphologically normal spermatozoa in stained and unstained semen smears. Fertile semen donors had a significantly (p < 0.001) higher percentage of normal sperm than men of unproven fertility. When compared to the fertile donors, 78% of the infertile men had increased teratospermia. Papanicolaou staining appears to enhance sperm morphology and allow improved discrimination of sperm head abnormalities.

Classification and quantification of abnormal sperm along the epididymal tract. Comparison between adult and aged hamsters

“…This is one of the most common alterations found in the ejaculates of many species (Barth and Oko, 1989;Ali and Grimes, 1989;Bonet, 1991). The precise origin of this defect is still unclear, but it has been observed in some cases as a result of acrosomal agenesia in the testis (Baccetti et al, 1977).…”

“…Coiling of sperm tail, bendings and persistence of the cytoplasmic droplets have been the alterations most consistently linked to the epididymis secondary defects (KoefoedJohnsen and Pedersen, 1971;Ali and Grimes, 1989;Barth and Oko, 1989;Bonet et al, 1992). Briz et al (1996) (Zamboni, 1987;Barth and Oko, 1989 (Overstreet, 1984 …”

Assessment of Human Sperm Morphology by Strict Criteria: Comparison of Wet Preparation Versus Stained With the Modified Diff-Quik Method

“…Concerning the percentage of spermatozoa with head, midpiece, and tail defects, the impact of preparation methods was more pronounced and correlation between the two methods was so poor as to be considered irrelevant for routine practice. Ali and Grimes [1] evaluated sperm morphology with unstained specimens and following Papanicolaou staining and they demonstrated a signi®cant di erence in the percentage of morphologically normal spermatozoa in stained and unstained semen smears. A very strong correlation for morphology assessment has been reported using Papanicolaou and Di -Quik stains in both unwashed and washed samples [11].…”

Assessment of the Relationship of Sperm Morphology with Seminal and Other Clinical Conditions of Semen Donors

“…Among these three frequently investigated sperm parameters, the contribution of sperm morphology in male fertility evaluation has been emphasized the most [16,191. Morphologically abnormal spermatozoa have reduced motility and impaired ability to penetrate and fertilize oocytes [2,51. If evaluation of normal sperm morphology is done using strict criteria, this parameter has an excellent predictive value of fertilization [16, 19, 241. However, the occurrence of abnormal forms of spermatozoa in human semen is quite high [21,241.…”

“…Although conventional semen analyses provide valuable clinical information, they are not absolute predictors of male fertility [2,181. Motility, vitality, and morphology are the three most important sperm parameters in routine semen analysis [12,181.…”