Comparative study of Sperm Motility Analysis System and conventional microscopic semen analysis

Area of Science:

• Reproductive Medicine
• Andrology
• Biotechnology

Background:

• Conventional manual sperm analysis exhibits variability despite World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines.
• Standardized methods are crucial for reliable semen analysis in clinical and research settings.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the accuracy and reliability of a new Sperm Motility Analysis System (SMAS) against established manual semen analysis methods based on WHO guidelines.
• To evaluate SMAS for its potential to reduce variability in sperm concentration and motility assessments.

Main Methods:

• Simultaneous analysis of semen samples from 30 infertility patients and 21 healthy volunteers using both manual microscopy (WHO guidelines) and the SMAS.
• Comparative statistical analysis of sperm concentration and percent motility obtained from both methods.

Main Results:

• Strong positive correlation observed between SMAS and manual analysis for sperm concentration (r=0.95, P<0.001) and percent motility (r=0.89, P<0.001).
• Excluding high sperm concentration samples (>30 × 10^6/mL) further improved the correlation for sperm concentration (r=0.81, P<0.001).

Conclusions:

• The Sperm Motility Analysis System (SMAS) demonstrates high correlation with WHO-based manual sperm analysis.
• SMAS presents a reliable and promising automated alternative for objective semen analysis, potentially improving diagnostic consistency.