Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Observational Study
. 2021 Jul;9(4):1176-1184.
doi: 10.1111/andr.13012. Epub 2021 May 6.

Improvement of sperm morphology after surgical varicocele repair

Daria Morini  1 , Giorgia Spaggiari  2 , Jessica Daolio  1 , Beatrice Melli  1   3 , Alessia Nicoli  1 , Gaetano De Feo  1 , Barbara Valli  1 , Domenico Viola  4 , Simona Garganigo  5 , Elena Magnani  5 , Annalisa Pilia  5 , Alessandra Polese  5 , Rossana Colla  5 , Manuela Simoni  2   6 , Lorenzo Aguzzoli  1 , Maria Teresa Villani  1 , Daniele Santi  2   6
Affiliations
Observational Study

Improvement of sperm morphology after surgical varicocele repair

Daria Morini et al. Andrology. 2021 Jul.

Abstract

Background: A causative relationship between varicocele and impairment of semen quality has been largely investigated in the context of male infertility, although its clinical benefit remains controversial.

Objective: To investigate the effect of varicocele correction on detailed morphologic microscopic semen parameters in a large homogeneous cohort of patients and to evaluate which factors could predict semen improvement after the surgical treatment.

Materials and methods: An observational, retrospective cohort study was carried out including all patients undergoing surgical treatment for varicocele from September 2011 to March 2020 in the same clinical centre. Enrolled males performed at least one semen analysis before and one after surgical varicocele correction. Primary outcome was the detailed morphologic microscopic sperm evaluation. Secondary outcomes were conventional semen analyses.

Results: A total of 121 males (mean age 24.6 ± 6.1 years) were enrolled. Using detailed morphologic microscopic sperm evaluation, a significant morphological improvement was recorded, with a reduction in head and tail abnormalities. Moreover, a significant increase in sperm concentration (p = 0.015) and percentage of progressive and total motility (p = 0.022 and p = 0.039) were observed after surgery. The multivariate logistic analysis identified the ultrasonography varicocele degree before surgery as a main predictor of the sperm concentration improvement (p = 0.016), with the highest improvement for varicocele of I and II degree.

Discussion: For the first time, the detailed morphologic microscopic sperm evaluation highlights a relevant reduction in sperm abnormalities after varicocele surgery, showing its potential application in clinical practice.

Keywords: male infertility; semen analysis; sperm morphology; varicocele; varicocelectomy.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The corresponding author states the absence of any conflict of interest for all author involved in the present study.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Flow chart of the patients' enrolment phase
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
Neural network analysis. The graph shows the relevance of each variable included in the neural network
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Baazeem A, Belzile E, Ciampi A, et al. Varicocele and male factor infertility treatment: a new meta‐analysis and review of the role of varicocele repair. Eur Urol. 2011;60:796‐808. 10.1016/j.eururo.2011.06.018 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Kupis Ł, Dobroński PA, Radziszewski P. Varicocele as a source of male infertility ‐ current treatment techniques. Central Eur J Urol. 2015;68:365‐370. 10.5173/ceju.2015.642 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Razi M, Tavalaee M, Sarrafzadeh‐Rezaei F, et al. Varicocele and oxidative stress: new perspectives from animal and human studies. Andrology. 2021;9(2):546‐558. 10.1111/andr.12940 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Kohn TP, Kohn JR, Pastuszak AW. Varicocelectomy before assisted reproductive technology: are outcomes improved? Fertil Steril. 2017;108:385‐391. 10.1016/j.fertnstert.2017.06.033 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Merla A, Ledda A, Di Donato L, Di Luzio S, Romani GL. Use of infrared functional imaging to detect impaired thermoregulatory control in men with asymptomatic varicocele. Fertil Steril. 2002;78:199‐200. 10.1016/s0015-0282(02)03155-2 - DOI - PubMed

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources