[Value of testicular biopsy in the diagnosis of sterility]

Male infertility is a far more prevalent problem than is perhaps generally realized. The evaluation of testicular biopsies allows various clinical syndromes of hypogonadism to be identified and a rational basis for therapy to be established. The morphological-anatomical classification of male infertility paralleling the clinical-biochemical classification divides the different varieties of male infertility into three categories: those due to pretesticular, testicular, and posttesticular causes. Testicular biopsy is an important method in the diagnosis and management of male infertility. The procedure is simple and safe in competent hands and yields information obtainable in no other way. The increasing use of this procedure permitts a rational classification of the testicular lesions responsible for infertility and provides an intelligent basis for the institution of corrective measures or the withholding of therapy in cases in which the biopsy indicates a hopeless prognosis for fertility.