Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 7, 2026
A Modified Vessel-Sparing Microsurgical Vasoepididymostomy
Published on: June 8, 2022
Technical modification of testicular sperm extraction expedites testicular sperm retrieval
Ronit Haimov-Kochman1, Tal Imbar, Francine Lossos
1In Vitro Fertilization Unit, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Hadassah Hebrew University Hospital, Mt. Scopus, Jerusalem, Israel. kochman@hadassah.org.il
Objective:
To determine the predictive value and the quality of supernatant sperm (SS) achieved by a simple laboratory technical modification after testicular sperm extraction (TESE).
Design:
A retrospective analysis.
Setting:
An IVF unit in a university medical center.
Patient(S):
Azoospermic patients undergoing TESE between January 2001 and December 2006.
Intervention(S):
Before the mechanical shredding, the testicular specimen in toto was placed in medium. The medium was spun and the pellet resuspended and transferred for SS detection. Then a wet preparation of the testicular tissue was shredded roughly and inspected for tissue sperm (TS) as described.
Main Outcome Measure(S):
Detection of SS versus TS, fertilization and pregnancy rates (PR) after intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) with SS versus TS.
Result(S):
The SS was detected in all specimens where TS was eventually found, independent of their testicular pathology. When the supernatant was spermatozoa-negative, no spermatozoa were detected in the tissue. For embryos derived from ICSI the fertilization rate of SS was significantly higher than TS (52% vs. 44%), whereas the PR was comparable.
Conclusion(S):
The SS serves as an excellent predictor of TESE outcome and as a superior source for fertilization. This modified technique enables faster decision of TESE outcome and an easier switch to donor sperm when available.
